


Parallel Worlds: Joined Lives

by shaysdragon



Series: Parallel Worlds [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternative Lifestyles, F/M, Gen, M/M, Multi, Multiple Partners
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-05
Updated: 2013-09-18
Packaged: 2017-12-14 01:40:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 55,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/831239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shaysdragon/pseuds/shaysdragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Capt. Jack Harkness is caught in a web of despair. He longs for the ones who made him complete - The Doctor and Rose Tyler. Can he cross his own timeline and find the solace he needs in a new world? </p><p>Set after TW:Children of Earth and DW:The End of Time. References - End of Time, Children of the Earth, and Journey's End. It has Spoilers - Fair Warning!</p><p><b>Disclaimer:</b> I don't own operate or have anything to do with the creators, publishers or distributors of Doctor Who other than being a rabid fangirl. This is a work of fiction based on existing characters and my own fantasy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Captain Jack Harkness sat at bar in a space dock orbiting above the planet Sto. Glancing around, he took stock of potential threats in the immediate area. One Judoon at the end of the bar, a large green Raxicoricofallipatorian at the table behind him and an Adipose walking across the bar in front of him. The vid screens above his head were showing footage of a luxury cruise ship that had time-jumped back to early 21st Century Earth and had an accident, barely missing crashing into Buckingham Palace. The ticker read Sabotage! The stool next to him was currently empty but it was still early; the end of the second space-shift didn't occur for another standard galactic hour. _It's just me and my thoughts. I can't get Alice's words out of my head. I know I made the right decision. It was sacrifice my grandchild or the entire human race… but damn, it is tearing me apart. I have to live knowing I made that choice and alienated my daughter forever. I couldn't stay on Earth and watch Gwen's growing happiness with her pregnancy or the joy she will have when her daughter is born. I couldn't bear her happiness not when all of mine has been ripped away from me. Face it Jack – You are running away. Only you have all time and space in front of you and no one to run to. Torchwood is gone. Martha and Mickey hitched up, the Doctor is God-knows-where and Rose is trapped in a parallel world. Everyone you love is gone or has moved on without you._  
  
With a sigh at his now empty glass, he waived at the bartender to bring him another. Walking over to Jack, the bartender passed him a note along with his drink. "From the man over there", he jerked his thumb over his shoulder and stepped away.  
  
In surprise, Jack looked up and saw one of the objects of his thoughts standing 20 feet away but making no move to join him. Instead the Doctor nodded at the note in Jack's hand. Opening it, he read:  
  
 _His name is Alonso._  
  
Looking up in confusion, the Doctor nodded to the empty stool, which was being currently being filled by a young attractive man in a sailor suit. The sailor threw his hat on the bar and slumped down in obvious distress.  
  
Still at a distance and with pain etched across his face the Doctor gave Jack a salute. Without thinking Jack jumped up and returned it, watching in sadness as his dearest friend walked away. _There was something very final in that exchange. It was goodbye. I am guessing he is going to regenerate, and this time, there is nothing he can do. My Doctor will soon be gone._  
  
Still lost in thought, Jack sat back down. Spying the note in front of him he read it again. Turning to the man now seated next to him he said, "So, Alonzo…"  
  
The man seated next to him turned to stare at him in obvious shock.  
  
"Goin' my way?"  
  
"How did you know my name?"  
  
Turning on the full wattage of the patented Capt. Jack Harness smile, he responded "I'm kind of psychic."  
  
"Really?" Alonzo said with a laugh before taking a better look at Jack. "Know what I am thinking right now?"  
  
"Oh yeah!" Jack returned with a grin and drained his glass. "Want to go back to my place? I have an aged Scotch that is better than anything they have here for making your sorrows disappear."  
  
"That sounds excellent mate."  
  
Jack paid his tab and gestured for Alonzo to precede him out the door. "Allons-y Alonzo."  
  
"Funny, I had a chap say that to me earlier this evening. Nice enough man, but he disappeared after the disaster. Not surprising really, not many of us survived…"  
  
"I know exactly what you mean."  
  
Jack pressed his hand against the doorplate of his room and ushered Alonzo inside. As soon as the door closed behind them, they fell into each other's arms. Clothes disappeared before they had taken more than two steps in to the room. Within moments they were engaged in a method of comfort known for centuries – lost in skin, sensation, lips, hands, and fleeting passion.  
  


********************

Jack woke alone to the soft chiming of the alarm on his watch. Shutting it off, he lay back under the covers and thought again about the Doctor. _I know he was saying goodbye, but I can't let him go yet. I need him now, more than I ever needed him before. Only, how am I going to get to him when I never know when or where he is going to be? Could I even travel with him again without Rose? She is as important to me as he is. I need them both, but she is trapped in an parallel universe._ The beginning of an idea started to form. _Can I do it? I would be crossing my own timeline, but if I am careful… I may be able to pull it off. I have ridden on the outside of the TARDIS before. Do I dare? Would I risk everything just to be with them again?_

With growing excitement Jack jumped up to get dressed. He set the date and location on time vortex manipulator to Hyde Park, London – 2009. Upon arriving at the site, he strolled across the park to a specific location, hid behind some trees, and sat down to wait.

An hour later, the familiar whirring noise of the TARDIS made him smile. Cautiously, he watched the scene unfold in front of him. A scene directly out of his past...

The Doctor, Jack and Martha stepped out of the TARDIS and into the beautiful summer afternoon. They stretched and smiled at each other. Suddenly the Doctor grabbed Jack's wrist.

Using his sonic screwdriver on the time vortex manipulator, the Doctor said, "I told you, no teleport! And, Martha, get rid of that Osterhagen thing, eh? Save the world one more time."

"Consider it done." Martha replied.

Both Jack and Martha looked to the Doctor and saluted him. Slightly surprised at the action, he returned it with a smile. Jack and Martha turned and walked away, hand in hand. Their conversation drifted back behind them.

Jack turned to Martha, "You know, I'm not sure about UNIT these days. Maybe there's something else you could be doing."

The Doctor watched them go, a touch of sadness in his smile. Surprised at a noise behind him, the Doctor twisted to see Mickey emerging from the TARDIS. "Oi, where are you going?"

"Well I'm not stupid; I can work out what happens next. And hey, I had a good time in that parallel world, but my gran passed away. Nice and peaceful. She spent her last years living in a mansion. There's nothing there for me now, certainly not Rose." Mickey responded.

"What will you do?"

"Anything! Brand new life! Just you watch. See you, Boss."

Laughing the Doctor and Mickey bumped fists before Mickey ran to catch up with Martha and Jack. "Hey, you two!"

"Oh. Thought I'd got rid of you." The exasperation in Jack's tone was more for show than any real annoyance on his part.

"Nope." Mickey threw his arms around their shoulders as they turned the corner. The Doctor watched them for a few seconds more before stepping back into the TARDIS. "Just time for one last trip. Darlig Ulv Stranden. Better known as..."

 

*********************

_This is my chance._ Creeping from behind the trees, Jack locked his arms around the TARDIS as she started to dematerialize again. Unlike the last time he did this, the TARDIS didn't protest the action. _She is a sentient being too, though we all tend to forget that. She must sense my need… or maybe there is something she needs from me._

The TARDIS rematerialized on a stretch of sandy beach. The faint whirring of a Zeppelin could be heard in the distance. Quickly Jack let go of his hold on the TARDIS and ran to hide behind a dune to watch another scene unfold. One that he was not privy too before...

The Doctor and Rose emerged from the TARDIS. She looked around. Shaking her head she said, "Bad Wolf Bay."

"Ah, fat lot of good this is! Back of beyond. Bloody Norway! I'm gonna have to phone your father, he's on the nursery run." Jackie's voice held disgust.

Donna and a second Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS.

Turning to the Doctor nearest Rose - a hybrid born of the Human-Time Lord metacrisis, Jackie continued, "I was pregnant, do you remember? Had a baby boy!"

The hybrid Doctor replied, "Ah, brilliant! What did you call him?"

"Doctor."

"Really?"

Jackie couldn't keep the smile from her face, "No, you plum! He's called Tony."

Rose turned and looked again at the location, "Hold on, this is... the parallel universe, right?"

The Doctor replied. "You're back home."

Donna added "And the walls of the world are closing again, now that the Reality Bomb never happened. It's dimensional retroclosure. See, I really get that stuff now."

Rose was agitated as she responded. "No, but... I spent all that time trying to find you. I'm not going back now!"

The Doctor answered her with a touch of sadness in his voice. "But you've got to. Cos we saved the universe, but at a cost." He looked and nodded to the hybrid Doctor standing next to her. "And the cost is him. He destroyed the Daleks. He committed genocide. He's too dangerous to be left on his own."

The hybrid Doctor replied, anger apparent in his voice. "You made me!"

"Exactly. You were born in battle, full of blood and anger and revenge." Turning to Rose he continued, "Remind you of someone? That's me, when we first met. And you made me better. Now you can do the same for him."

"But he's not you."

"He needs you. That's very me."

Donna interjected hoping to smooth things out, "But it's better than that, though. Don't you see what he's trying to give you?" She nodded to the hybrid Doctor next to Rose. "Tell her, go on."

"I look like him, I think like him, same memories, same thoughts, same everything. Except I've only got one heart." The hybrid Doctor said carefully.

Rose was still confused, "Which means?"

"I'm part human. Specifically, the aging part. I'll grow old and never regenerate. I've only got one life... Rose Tyler. I could spend it with you. If you want."

"You'll grow - grow old... at the same time as me?"

"Together."

Rose reached out to place her hand on the hybrid Doctor's heart. Feeling only a single beat, she stared up into his eyes, confused.

Donna and the Doctor stood by the TARDIS door smiling until a grinding noise reminded them that time was slipping away. "We've got to go; this reality is sealing itself off... forever." Both he and Donna turned to go back into the TARDIS.

Rose wasn't quite ready to give up, "But... it's still not right... cos the Doctor is... still you."

"And I'm him!"

Flustered, Rose finally said, "All right. Both of you, answer me this. When I last stood on this beach, on the worst day of my life, what was the last thing you said to me? Go on, say it."

The Doctor replied, "I said, "Rose Tyler."

"Yeah, and how was that sentence gonna end?"

Pain evident in his voice, the Doctor replied, "Does it need saying?"

Turning to the hybrid Doctor next to her, she asked, "And you, Doctor? What was the end of that sentence?"

Without pausing to think the hybrid Doctor leaned in to whisper into her ear. "I love you."

Rose pulled back slightly to look at him. Then without any hesitation or fear she pulled him into a kiss. For the first time, the passion they had been keeping from each other was fully realized. As their lips danced together and their focus remained on each other, they missed seeing the devastated expression on the Doctor's face as he and Donna stepped back into the TARDIS. Only the sound of the TARDIS dematerializing broke them apart. Pulling away, she ran toward it, but she could do nothing but watch it disappear.

Slowly the hybrid Doctor – HER Doctor walked forward and took her hand. He gently turned her to look at him and together they walked back down the beach to where Jackie was waiting.

Still hiding behind the sand dune, the tears streamed down Jack's face. _I know that heartbreak. I can't join them yet. They need time to recover and build a relationship on their own. I am here in this world and I can't die. I can be patient for a while longer._

Jack watched as a vehicle came to pick up the Tylers and the Doctor. Feeling like it was finally safe for him to emerge; he walked the length of the beach. He paused at the point where the TARDIS had rested and put his hand down into the faint lingering warmth. Suddenly, a trick of light glinted off of a piece of crystallized coral about the length of his hand. Picking it up, he could feel the energy pulsing inside it. _So this is why the TARDIS let me ride on her without a fuss. She wanted me to find this and give it to him – a final parting gift showing her love._

Suddenly, feeling lighter hearted than he had in several months, Jack tucked the crystal into his jacket pocket and walked toward the road.


	2. Chapter 2

_**One month later…**_  
  
Captain Jack Harkness walked slowly up the steps in front of the building housing the Torchwood Institute in this parallel world' s London. He had spent the last few weeks learning the differences between this world and the one he had left. He was quite pleased to see that the differences were minor – zeppelins, industry running about 10 years ahead of the old Earth, peace in the Middle Eastern countries and conflict in South America _. It didn't take me very long at all to get acclimated, but then again, it usually doesn't. I just need to pass this hurdle and pass it in a way that it doesn't alert Rose or the Doctor. They still need time together. I just need to be in a place that I can do something productive. Thanks to the influence of Mickey, Rose, and Pete, this world's Torchwood is closer to mine than its original incarnation. This is good. I didn't look forward to revisiting the "All alien technology belongs to us to use as we see fit" doctrine. I much prefer the cautious approach of capture, study, and use only with extreme caution. I can blend in here and be useful._  
  
Jack pushed open the glass doors and walked up to the receptionist. Giving his best smile he said, "I have an appointment with Pete Tyler. My name is Jack Harkness."  
  
For the first time, as far back as he could remember, the receptionist didn't respond to his greeting with the usual casual sexually flirty response. Her cadence was clipped as she glanced up at him, typed his name into her computer and reached to hand him a small sticker badge embedded with a microchip. "Mr. Tyler is on floor 63, Suite 6301. You must wear the badge at all times while in the building. This badge will only allow access to the route and suite you are visiting. Should you attempt to get off the elevator on a different floor, a force shield will automatically deploy preventing your leaving the elevator and security will be called immediately. Please be aware that the badge has now taken a microprint of the location where it has been applied. Should you attempt to remove it, alter it, or in any way tamper with it, it will release a bolt of electricity perfectly calibrated to your body to stun you to immobility. The only safe place to remove the badge is on this floor. As your route is pre-planned and you do not have access to employee areas, we have restrooms available to your left, if you need to use the facilities before your meeting. Do you have any questions?"  
  
_Ok, maybe this world is a bit more than 10 years ahead of the old Earth in the matter of technology._ Out loud Jack replied, "I understand. Thank you."  
  
"You are welcome. Mr. Tyler will see you now. Have a pleasant day." The smile she offered was polite,perfunctory, and never met her eyes.  
  
Jack walked toward the elevators, which opened automatically as he approached. Once inside the button for the 63rd floor automatically lit up. _Snazzy. It would have been nice to have this technology back home. I wonder which planet it came from._  
  
The doors opened and a lighted path appeared on the floor in front of him guiding him toward Suite 6301. As tempted as he was to test the security system in place, for once prudence got the better of him and he quietly followed the path laid out before him, while his eyes furiously scanned every wall, turn, and the placement of every door. The path stopped at the entrance to a corner office. Entering the room, Jack saw a young man manning the desk in the room, who was obviously Pete Tyler's personal assistant. His heart clenched as he approached the desk - flashbacks of naked bodies tangled together for hours, laughing conversations, and the last breath of the man before him escaping as Jack held him with tears running down his face. _Those were a different time different place. He doesn't know me here._ Locking the emotion away, Jack again offered his customary greeting and was at least a bit mollified to see that it still worked to some extent.  
  
"Hello. I am Capt. Jack Harkness. I am here to see Pete Tyler."  
  
"Ianto Jones. I am Mr. Tyler's personal assistant. If you will have a seat, I will let him know you are here."  
  
"I'm not going to be stunned for sitting down, am I?" Jack tried to joke but it fell flat.  
  
"You will be fine." Ianto pushed a button on his phone. "Mr. Tyler, Jack Harkness to see you… Mmmm-hmmm… Ok. Thank you, sir."  
  
Turning to Jack with a smile, he said, "You may go in."  
  
Ianto's smile cut deeply into Jack's heart even as he tried to ignore the pain. Still, he was able to manage a small smile as he said, "Thank you."  
  
Jack walked into an office bordered on two sides by walls of glass, which offered a stunning view of the city and the zeppelins lazily floating above it. The man sitting behind the desk Jack had never met before, but he could see hints of Rose in the shape of the eyes and the tilt of the chin. Pete Tyler was of average height, balding with close cropped blond hair, a ready smile, and piercing blue eyes that immediately let Jack know that the brilliant smile was a cover for a shrewd mind. Jack walked forward quickly and extended his hand.  
  
Shaking it with a firm, but not hard grip, Pete gestured for Jack to have a seat in one of the two leather chairs across from his desk. He sat back into his own, sizing Jack up, before leaning forward again and steepling his fingers on the desk. "So, Mr. Harkness. Please tell me how a man who does not exist, manages to find Torchwood and gets access to its director."  
  
Something warned Jack that he would need to tell the absolute truth, or everything that he had taken a chance for would be lost and he would find himself alone in a dark cell for a very long time. Taking a deep breath Jack began his story. "I was a companion of your daughter and the Doctor on the parallel Earth. In the course of saving the world, Rose looked into the heart of the TARDIS and held the power of time, which she used to destroy the Daleks. In the process she also unintentionally made me immortal, though I do not know if she actually remembers that part." Jack continued discussing the events that led to his return to Earth and his founding of Torchwood Three and the shift in the doctrine that occurred after the battle of Canary Wharf. He also discussed the battle against Davros and the subsequent battle with the 456.  
  
Pete listened intently to everything Jack told him, nano-technology in the air around the chair he Jack was sitting in effectively acted as a lie-detector, but Pete didn't need to see it to tell that Jack was telling the truth. He had heard much of this already from Rose and Jackie, though the 456 threat was new and one that he would note as a future potential threat. Finally, he stopped Jack and asked, "I appreciate your telling me all of this, but you haven't answered a particular question which needs to be discussed. You knew this world would be cut off from your Earth and you chose to strand yourself here. Why?"  
  
"Because I couldn't stand being without them any longer," Jack said quietly. "After the 456, I started realizing how much I had lost. The Doctor, Rose, my team, my daughter and grandson, everyone that I cared about had moved on and I was lost. Then the Doctor appeared to me one last time and an idea formed. I suspected that Rose and Jackie would have been returned to this parallel world and that the hybrid Doctor would be with them. I crossed my own timeline and followed them. I know that I am immortal and they are not. I know that I could lose them again, but in my life, the happiest I have ever been is when Rose fell off a barrage balloon onto my spaceship, which brought both her and the Doctor into my life. They changed me. They shaped me from a con-artist into someone who cared about the world; cared about saving the world. I need them in a way I have never needed anyone else.' Jack paused for a moment then added quietly. "The thing is, I need them, but I know that right now, they need each other more. If I know anything about Rose, she is still grieving the loss of the Doctor in the TARDIS. She knows in her heart that the Doctor that remained behind is still a part of the other, but her head is probably reminding her that he is different… and without a TARDIS the differences will be little pinpricks of pain she will have to adjust to. For his part, the loss of the TARDIS will be even harder for him and Rose coming to grips with loving him will be tearing him apart. They will get through it; it will probably only take one little world crisis to do so. I can't imagine a universe where the Doctor and Rose aren't meant to be together."  
  
Pete was stunned at how accurately Jack described the current tension between his daughter and the Doctor. If his gut hadn't already cleared Jack, it did now. He could also see the desperate need on Jack's face for both of his companions. Still, he steeled his expression and asked, "What do you want to do? Why did you come see me first?"  
  
"I want to join Torchwood again. I can be pretty handy in a fight and I am familiar with a lot of alien tech. I just have one request. I would like to be stationed somewhere outside of London for now, and I don't want you to tell either Rose or the Doctor about my being here for the time being. They need to work out their dynamic without me interfering in it. Eventually, I will make my presence known, but for now I am asking for your silence on it."  
  
"I think that is a fair re-"  
  
"Pete! Pete darling… the nanny has said Tony is hiding in the zeppelin again and won't come out unless you get him," A middle aged blond with her hair pulled back into a ponytail quickly walked into the room, not even registering that her husband was talking to someone. "That's the third time this week. I am going to have to look into getting another one, because she obviously can't keep up."  
  
"All right, Jacks," Pete said trying to hide a smile from the flustered woman in front of him. This Jackie Tyler had wiggled her way deeper into his heart than even his former wife. He loved everything about her spunkiness and her constant complaining, while she hid her huge heart from the world. They both had weathered their own rough patch when she first came to this world – Her Pete having died when Rose was a baby and his Jackie having been turned into a Cyberman. But they had gotten through it, which gave him hope that Rose and the Doctor would too. Turning to Jack, he said, "I am sorry but I will have to cut this interview short. Leave your contact info with Ianto and I will have someone send you the information on where you would be stationed. I am thinking Cardiff. Something tells me that you would be at home there."  
  
Jackie finally realized that there was someone else in the room and turned to look at him, an apology forming on her lips. "I am so…. BLIMEY! Capt. Jack Harkness what on God's green earth are you doing in this parallel world? How did you get here? Does Rose know? Does the Doctor? I need to tell them!" She whipped out her cell phone and started pushing buttons.  
  
With a quick glance of apology at Pete, Jack rushed to knock the phone out of Jackie's hand and covered her mouth with his hand. Jackie, unfazed, promptly bit him.  
  
"Ow!"  
  
"Serves you right. What did you go and do that for?"  
  
"I am sorry Jackie, but I had to stop you from calling Rose. Neither she nor the Doctor knows I am here and I want to keep it that way for a while longer."  
  
"Why?" the suspicion oozed out of Jackie's voice.  
  
Jack sighed, "Because they need time to work out their relationship without me in the middle of it. I took advantage of my only opportunity to cross into this world but they aren't ready for me yet. It has been over three years since I last saw all of you, where for you it has only been a month or so."  
  
"Have you thought they might do better with you there, rather than hiding out?"  
  
"No… and I won't. They love each other. In their hearts they know this it's just taking their damn brains a little longer to figure it out. I love them both more than they know, but if I step out of the shadows now, they will focus on me and how I got here, rather than focusing on each other. I don't want that."  
  
"All right. I won't say anything for now." Jackie grumbled. "But you need to tell them soon. I still think having someone else who traveled with them and saw what they did would help them remember."  
  
"Thank you Jackie." Jack's voice was sincere.  
  
"C'mon Jacks, let's go get Tony." Pete's voice brought them back to the issue at hand. "Jack, I will plan on meeting you in Cardiff next week to introduce you to the team."  
  
"Thank you Mr. Tyler. For Everything."  
  
"Call me Pete. I have a feeling we are going to be working together quite a bit."  
  
"Thank you, Pete."  
  
The Tylers slipped out a side door, which Jack guessed led to the roof, while Jack stepped back out into the front office. Ianto was still at his desk, typing away at his computer. This time Jack noticed a wedding ring on Ianto's finger and on the corner of his desk, there was picture of Ianto, the woman Jack remembered as Lisa, and a young girl of maybe two or three with a wide smile and beautiful green eyes. Smiling he said, "Is this your daughter?"  
  
The smile on Ianto's face widened as he replied. "Yes that's Lizzy. She's three now, though in the picture she had just turned two. She is my pride and joy. She shares a nanny with young Tony Tyler, so I know what is happening. Don't worry; Pete will be able to talk his son off the zeppelin. It's almost a game for him now. He's obsessed with anything that flies."  
  
"Sounds like his sister," Jack mumbled quietly, while Ianto shot him a questioning look but didn't say anything.  
  
"I have your paperwork here, Capt. Harkness. If you want to fill it out and bring it back tomorrow, I will get everything squared away including your security clearances. The Cardiff building is small, but it does have sleeping quarters, which you are welcome to make use of or there is an apartment building nearby if you prefer your privacy. You are all set to start next Monday. Please report here in the morning and one of the senior staff will escort you over to the site and introduce you to the staff onsite."  
  
"Please call me Jack," He smiled again at Ianto as he took the paperwork. "I look forward to getting to know all of you better."  
  
"Welcome to Torchwood, Jack."  
  



	3. Chapter 3

**_Three months later…_**  
  
Rose watched her Doctor sonic his way into the bunker. _Some things never change. I really didn't want to believe it, but there is no question in my mind anymore. He is MY Doctor. The one who left me was mine once, but he changed - too much sorrow, not enough joy, even as he had Martha and Donna with him. They tried. Donna almost succeeded. I thought I would be jealous, but I am glad that he did find others to travel with him when I couldn't. But when my hybrid Doctor told me about the situation with The Master and what he knew he would have to do to Donna, shortly after they left us, I know it will break something inside of him. I know him. He won't let any more people in – it hurts too much and it will eventually eat him alive. I don't know if even I could have helped him, but his actions were clear that he didn't want me to try. Where once he grabbed my hand and laughingly said "Run", as we hurtled towards adventure and danger together, he pushed me away because he knew I would eventually leave him – Not by choice, but by my mortality. He loved me. I still love him and part of me always will even as I know now that I could not be what he needed. But I can be who this Doctor needs… and I need him. I need his quirkiness, his brilliance, his tendency to babble on and then lose track of what he is saying. I need the way he looks at me when he thinks I am not paying attention, the desire he doesn't have to hide anymore, and his acknowledgement of his own fear as he has to adapt to a reality – not run from it. I lost so much – my sanity, my world, Mickey... Jack._  
  
The Doctor grumbled at his sonic screwdriver, shook it a few times, adjusted some dials and went back to attempting to open the bunker door – grumbling about war relics, the fact that the sonic screwdriver didn't perform as handily without the energy from the TARDIS to boost its strength, and cursing Pete for sending them out to a remote station near Cardiff to explore, where there was a Cardiff Torchwood Team less than 20 kilometers from the site. Of course that set him grumbling about the fact that he was now a part of Torchwood in the first place.  
  
Rose hid a smile as the litany had become familiar and dear to her over the last few months. _Yes. We are with Torchwood now. Capt. Jack Harkness would be proud._ The thought of her friend back on Earth, made her turn melancholy again. _Dear gods, I miss Jack. The Doctor finally told me why he left Jack on the Game Station. I made him a fixed point in time. The power of the TARDIS flowing through me and I couldn't let him die. He was my best friend, my partner-in-flirt, my confidant as he listened to all of my longing for the man who I thought never saw me as anything other than an amusing human. For all that the Doctor says that I was the one that changed him – made him better – Jack was the one that taught him that it was ok to flirt. It was ok to be attracted to someone. I don't know if I could have stayed with him as he regenerated if there hadn't been Jack's influence subtly at work on him._  
  
"HA! Got it!" The enthusiasm from the Doctor's voice snapped Rose out of her mood. When he grabbed her hand in a timeless gesture and started running down the hall with her, the mood was completely forgotten in the rush of excitement and adventure.  
  
Their mingled laughter echoed down the empty halls.  


*******************

Capt. Jack Harkness had received the report from Pete Tyler regarding an unusual power source centered in one of the old World War Three bunkers, just outside of Cardiff.The preliminary scans didn't show any life signs, so he took the opportunity to step away from his new team and go check it out by himself. _It is still weird to me to see Tosh, Owen and Susan there. My world they are all dead. Here Tosh and Susan are dating, Owen is engaged to Gwen, who never joined Torchwood and is still on the Cardiff Police Force. I know that they think I am odd, because there are times I forget and react to them as if we were still back on Earth and had years of working together, not just three short months. Oh well, I have been called worse than odd._

Punching in the code that Pete had given him, it took a matter of seconds before the large metal door released its locks and swung open with a low groan on its rusty hinges. He pulled a portable scanner from his pocket to verify the location of the power source and was surprised to see multiple energy readings, where his earlier scan had only the one. The metal of the bunker interfered with the ability of the scanner to determine what type of life-form the other two energy readings were, but they were definitely heading toward the center energy source. Swiftly, Jack made the decision to switch to reconnaissance and if necessary return with the others. Holding his sonic blaster in a ready position just in case, Jack slowly made his way down the metal corridor, using only the ambient light that radiated down the hallways from the power source at the center.

Stealthily, Jack crept closer to the center until a slight misstep caused him to kick a rock that went scuttling down the path. It bounced off the metal wall with a soft clang. Jack froze and held his breath, pressing up to the cold metal and listened for any hint that something had heard.  


********************

The laughter of Rose and the Doctor had faded as their natural caution took over. They were using a small device to light their path, but by mutual agreement, they decided not to speak as they worked their way closer to the center of the bunker. Suddenly the Doctor pinned Rose up against the hard wall and pressed his body into hers, freezing them into place.

Pressing her lips as close as she could to the Doctor's ear, she whispered, "Not that I mind being pressed into the wall by you, but why? Did you hear something?"

"Yes. Something small and hard just bounced off the wall in the corridor directly across from us. I don't think we are alone in here." His whisper was as quiet as hers had been. He pressed a hard object into her stomach. "Take this."

"Why Doctor, is that a stun laser or are you just happy to see me?" her cheekiness coming out to cover the nervousness as she realized that there may be trouble.

Unable to resist her and unwilling to even try to now that he didn't have to, he added back with just a hint of heat, "I'll show you a laser that will stun you." Quickly he pressed his lips against hers in a silent kiss for luck and just because he could. He still refused to use a gun, but the stun laser was non-lethal and worked closely enough to his sonic screwdriver, that he let himself fudge a little. _Little changes I have to get used to. No TARDIS means no safe haven to run to and I won't risk losing Rose again._

Slowly they broke apart and crept toward the center hub, where a Frisbee sized object emitted a soft radiant blue light. Quickly, Rose moved to the wall opposite, stun-laser poised and ready. She gave the Doctor a nod.

"Oi, you in the corridor across from us. We know you are there. Toss your weapons into the room and come out with your limbs in the air."

Jack's heart flipped as he heard the familiar voice ring through the hall. _The Doctor. Rose must be somewhere nearby. Come on Jack, you crossed parallel worlds for this. You can't run without them catching you. It's time to come clean._

"We know you are there. This is your last chance to come out. We have the bunker surrounded by agents. We mean you no harm but we will respond to any attack. We can help you get back to your world. This one is under our protection."

Jack grinned. He said loudly, "Oh Doctor. You couldn't get me back to my world, even if I wanted to go, since I had a hell of a time getting here in the first place." Raising his arms, Jack stepped into the center of the corridor and let the blue light up his face.

"Jack?!" Rose was the first to recognize his voice and within moments of his finishing his response had catapulted herself into his arms, laughing.

"Hi Rosie." Jack smiled as he hugged her tightly. He watched over her shoulder as the Doctor sauntered into the room, looking exactly as Jack remembered - an inscrutable look on his face. Jack tried to keep his expression neutral and not show the fear that he was feeling at seeing the man he had crossed worlds for. The man who had once told Jack in no uncertain terms that he felt 'wrong.'

"Jack." The Doctor took two more steps forward before letting a huge cheesy grin cross his face. He pulled Jack into a bear hug to rival Rose's. Pulling back he gripped Jack's head between both hands and shook it a little bit. "What in Rassilion are you doing here? I left you, Martha, and Mickey back on Earth months ago."

"It's a long story." Jack replied as Rose walked up and put her arms around both of them. Jack slipped one of his around her, not quite ready to let her go.

"Long stories are what we live for," she laughed. "But first, shouldn't we check out what is making that weird blue light?"

"Blue light… Right! Brilliant!" The doctor walked over to the disc. "It's a Althracian memory disc. Haven't seen one of these in eons. Good word that – eon. I will have to use it more often. I wonder if I know anyone named Ian…"

Rose just giggled and walked forward to examine the disc. "Hey wasn't that the blue thingy-"

"Althracian Memory disc."

"Right-o." Both Jack and Rose grinned to each other at the unconscious correcting of her terminology, "Wasn't there an Althracian Memory Disc noted as missing from the Torchwood Archives last week? I wonder how it ended up here."

"Jackie and Pete." Jack's voice held both humor and resignation.

"Mum and Dad?"

"Yeah… ummm... both your mom and Pete know that I have been here for four months. Jackie must have decided that she didn't want to keep the secret anymore and pushed Pete to send you guys out here to look at something that would have normally fallen under Torchwood Cardiff's area. This is, incidentally, where I have been for the last three months."

"Sounds like something your mum would do actually. Rassilion knows that she makes her wishes known."

"Hey!" Rose punched him lightly on the arm. 'Stop knocking my mum."

"Oi! It's true though."

Jack's heart warmed as he watched the banter between the two of them. _They have comes to terms with each other. That's good. I wouldn't have made myself known for a few more months. Maybe a Mom really does know best._

"Are you two going to just stand there arguing or should we take it back to Torchwood?" Jack teased.

"Oi, don't think you are getting out of telling us why you are here Jackie-boy." The Doctor returned.

"I wouldn't dream of it. We can drop this Althracian Memory Disc back by Torchwood and go back to my place. Hypervodka doesn't exist here yet, but I have some decent wine."

"Trying to get us drunk already, Captain?" Rose teased her friend.

Jack winked at her. "Not that I think it would get me far, but… a guy can dream can't he."

Rose laughed. Linking arms with the two men, she marched them back down the corridor to the entrance. "Allons-y. I want to know how Jack got here and why. Everything else can wait."

Rose, you've gotten bossy, you know," Jack smiled.

"Comes from jumping countless worlds to try to save the Universe. Ya know… all in a day's work."

"It's rather sexy, actually."

"Don't I know it," The Doctor muttered under his breath as they walked back out into the crisp Cardiff afternoon.


	4. Chapter 4

Getting Rose and the Doctor back to his apartment wasn’t quite as easy as Jack thought it would be. First they had to stop at Torchwood and drop off the Althracian Memory Disc, which meant explaining to his team why he took off to check out a suspicious circumstance without any back-up; then Rose, Susan, and Tosh ended up in a discussion about what color Susan and Tosh were going to paint the baby’s room, which brought home to Jack the fact that he had no idea the couple was in the process of trying to adopt and reminded him that he really hadn’t tried to even get to know his co-workers in this world; finally, as soon as Jack was able to regain Rose’s attention, he saw the Doctor fiddling with several of the knobs on the control tanks to the reactor which powered the building, while Owen ran around the center column after him trying frantically to return all the adjustments to their previous setting.  
  
Sighing in frustration as the old earth adage “it’s like trying to herd cats” ran through his mind and a cluster headache threatened, he bellowed, “Everyone - Go home!!! It’s the end of the workday and everything can wait until tomorrow. Doctor, Rose, do you want to know how I got here or not?”  
  
“Oi, no need to be grouchy old man, just modifying the settings,” The Doctor answered without a smidgeon of remorse.  
  
“Modifying them to the point that one fraction more of a turn would have sent the core into meltdown,” Owen muttered under his breath.  
  
“Sorry Jack,” Rose said sheepishly. “it has been ages since I last saw Suz and Tosh, and I got distracted.”  
  
“Well, it’s been ages since you last saw me too,” Jack pouted then smiled, “but see, I can forgive you. Now I do actually need to show you and the Doctor something, so would you please come with me? My flat is just down the street.”  
  
“Sure thing,” Rose mouthed the word “green” to Tosh one more time before waving to the Torchwood Cardiff crew and linked her arm in Jack’s. Marching him over to the Doctor, she linked her other arm in his (much to the relief of Owen) and pulled them both towards the exit. _I do need to get up here more often, especially now that I am not parallel jumping anymore. I miss talking to Suz and Tosh. I also need to talk to Dad about getting more modern furnishings in here… That creepy cat-clock looks like it’s watching every move I make._  


********************

Once outside into the now cool night air, Jack felt his headache dissipating. It didn’t hurt that Rose’s warm body would occasionally brush up against his as they walked down the street and she prattled on about how lucky Tosh and Susan were. He kept stealing glances at both her and the Doctor relishing the fact that they were together again. On one of those furtive glances, the Doctor caught him at it and held his eyes for a few moments reading deep into Jack’s soul. Jack gave an almost imperceptible shudder. _How exactly does he do that? It’s like he knows exactly what I am thinking or what I am feeling. I can’t hide anything from him and I don’t want to hide anything from her anymore. Ok Jack. It’s time to come clean… well mostly clean. Some things must still be kept hidden._

“We are here,” Jack said as he led them up the stairs to a nondescript brick building about half a mile from Torchwood.

“Charming.” Rose teased.

“It reminds me of that… oh wait, nevermind. It doesn’t remind me of anything. It’s boring.” The Doctor said.

“Ha! Boring it might look like from the outside, but you should be the last person who judges something by the way it looks on the outside,” Jack grinned at his friends as he pushed open the beige door to his flat and gestured his friends inside.

“Oh Wow!!” Rose breathed in wonder as she took in the thoroughly modern interior. Polished chrome and brass fixtures were balanced against soft walls that varied in color but made a seamless whole. The center space held a long plush L- shaped couch of soft black leather accented with velvet pillows in red and white across from a wall of windows that looked out over Cardiff Bay. The fireplace took up a good portion of one wall and skylights overhead transitioned from opaque to clear to allow for a breathtaking view of the stars. An arched doorway on one side of the wall that held the fireplace gave a peek into a lavishly decorated bedroom done up in deep blues and silver with a large four post bed in the center. On the other side of the center lounging area, a step up led into the dining area and a spacious kitchen.

“Heh. It’s better on the inside,” the Doctor joked, before slipping off his coat, setting it on the coat rack by the door, and vaulting over the back of the couch. “Quite comfy too. Fantastic.”

Jack’s grin was wide as he took Rose’s coat and put it on the rack along with his. “I thought you might like it. I tried to model it off my room on the TARDIS. She always did know exactly how to make someone feel comfortable.”

“Now that you mention it, I don’t think I ever actually saw your room on the TARDIS. It seems a bit odd now that I think about it,” Rose said perplexed.

“I never saw your room either as a matter of fact,” Jack answered, just as confused.

“Ummm… Weeeeeeell… you know there might have been a reason for that,” the Doctor looked guilty. “I kind of asked the old girl to ‘suggest’ something else if either of you flirted too intensely or thought too long about wanting to… ummm… visit with each other in any areas other than the common spaces.”

“Doctor!! How could you DO that?!” Rose asked furiously, her hands on her hips and her eyes flashing dangerously, while Jack fell backwards onto the couch clutching his stomach as he laughed uncontrollably.

“I am sorry Rose, really. But you were just nineteen and so full of human emotion, energy, hormones, and such and Jack is … well… Jack. I think I may have been a little bit jealous back then, though I never would have admitted it to myself. How could you have wanted to spend time with goofy ol’ me, with my big ears and big nose when there was someone far more attractive just down the hall? Of course I told myself it was all about “humans and their hormones” but now that I actually am part human and I have some distance from that incarnation, I realized that I was lying to myself. I didn’t want you both to get together and leave me out.” The Doctor finished the last bit quietly, the words barely above a whisper.

Both Rose and Jack heard them, though and recognized the longing in them. Jack stopped laughing, got up and walked into the other room to give his friends a moment of privacy. _So much makes sense now. Every time I would start to wonder if I could take our friendship deeper and resolve to do so, I would get side-tracked and not remember that I was going to do it until later after everyone had already gone to sleep for the night. But Doctor, what you didn’t know is that I was thinking about you just as much as Rose – big ears and nose notwithstanding._

Rose saw Jack get up and quickly leave the room. A sharp pang slid through her chest for a split second before she focused on the man on the couch in front of her; the man who was now hanging his head in shame. Slowly she walked over to him, raised his head with her hand, and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. She felt most of the tension in his body melt away as he responded. _He really was afraid of how I would react when he told me._ She pushed him back into the couch and straddled his knees. “Doctor, I am still annoyed that you did that – it wasn’t fair and it showed that you didn’t really trust either me or Jack, but I think I understand why you did it. You also need to realize that it also kept me away from you. Yes there were times when I wanted Jack, but I ALWAYS wanted you.” Leaning in, she kissed him again, deeper and with all the intensity she had held back for years.

The Doctor melted under her lips, finally acknowledging all the ways he lied to himself about the woman in his arms. _Rose is mine, in the end. The way I have always wanted it. I can finally share a lifetime with one person and not worry about the goodbyes._ Even as he thought it a niggling little worm started in his mind… _Are you still lying to yourself? You didn’t mention that you asked the TARDIS to do the same for you as for Jack and Rose. If you started thinking about either of them that way… How many times did the TARDIS redirect you? Not just with Rose… but also with Jack._

A discreet cough from Jack made Rose pull away from the Doctor, shift her weight, and sit next to him on the sofa. Jack entered the room carrying a tray of assorted sliced meats, cheeses, olives, and crackers in one hand while holding three wine glasses in the other. A wine bottle was held tightly under his arm, pressed to his body. Seeing the precarious hold Jack had on the tray, Rose jumped up and took it from him setting it on the low table in front of the couch.

“Thank you,” Jack said with gratitude. Then he added with a wink, “but you didn’t have to stop snogging on my account. It’s fun to watch you crazy kids together.” He set the glasses on the table and opened the bottle of wine before sitting down on the other side of Rose.

“Ha! I am still older than you, Jack. At least I think I am…” The Doctor started out confident then turned puzzled in the middle. “How old are you now anyway?”

“Honestly, with all the various time jumping, deaths that took years to recover from, stasis, and such I really have no idea any more. I just celebrate my birthday and say I am thirty-five each year. Makes it easy and friends just laugh – thinking I want to keep my actual age a secret.”

“Why thirty-five?” Rose asked curiously, as she grabbed a slice of cheese and rolled a piece of salami around it.

“Why not? It’s a good age. It’s realistic to what my body looks like. It says that I am past all the superficial partying that usually happens in your twenties, hints at responsibility and respectability, but also is an age that is still comfortable with the ideas of flexibility and adaptability – sexually, professionally, and morally.” Jack answered with a grin. He grabbed the bottle of wine, poured three glasses and then lifted his for a toast. “Plus it means I can still chase the twenty-somethings without looking like a dirty old man.”

“But you ARE a dirty old man,” Rose teased, her tongue touching her teeth in an unconscious gesture that made both the men smile. She tilted her glass toward him in salute before taking a sip. “My gods, this is delish!”

“Thanks, it’s from this world’s California Amador valley. Not quite as well-known as Napa but better in my humble opinion because it’s less commercial. Anyway, back to the subject of age, how old are you now Rose?”

“I am twenty-eight.”

The Doctor looked at her in surprise. “But it was only two years since we were separated at Canary Wharf!”

“I spent seven years trying to find a way back to you. The last four were spent world jumping,” Rose said quietly.

“I didn’t know… Oh Rose…,” for once the Doctor didn’t know what to say. Jack reached out and linked his fingers around hers in a show of support and understanding.

“I wondered, honestly,” Jack said quietly. “When you guys left me on the Game Station, you still had an air of innocence and wonder. When I saw you again, the innocence was gone and the wonder was tempered with caution. That only comes with years of dealing with grim reality.”

“It had its moments of joy. Learning what it was like to have a father and the birth of my little brother, but mostly I spent my time alone. I went back to school and was able to get my degree within a couple years. I started fully with Torchwood after I graduated, though I had been working part-time with them while I was finishing school, that was when we first noticed the stars fading. Once we had a stable dimension device, I started jumping worlds trying to find the Doctor.” Rose paused and took another sip of her wine, “I saw so many worlds where there was no Doctor or where Torchwood had become a sinister thing; so many atrocities that could have been prevented. It hurt to see and realize how incredibly lucky we were to have the Doctor and that our Torchwood changed after Canary Wharf. That change was all due to you Jack. Without you and the changes you made, the Earth would have suffered the same fate as so many other realities. It’s one of the reasons we have tried really hard to mimic it with this world’s Torchwood. I knew when I found Donna the first time I was in the right Earth, and then when it shifted oddly, I knew the Donna was the key to bringing it back.” Rose paused, then said with emotion, “she didn’t deserve what happened to her.”

The Doctor took her other hand, while wiping the tear that had slid down her cheek. He regretted that he had to tell her what he knew had to happen to his dear friend, but Rose had needed to know everything.

“No she didn’t,” Jack said quietly, “and I think it finally broke something in the other Doctor. Within the space of an hour he had to let you go and destroy the woman who had become his best friend. I don’t think he really recovered from it. He disappeared for years and we were forced to deal with the 456 alone.”

Rose felt the intensity of Jack’s sorrow in those words. She didn’t know what the 456 were or what had happened, but it had to have been horrible to create that kind of reaction in her friend. She gripped his hand hard and rested her head lightly against his shoulder, offering her support as he had given his.

Taking a deep breath, Jack continued, “After the 456, I had to leave Earth. I heard a rumor about Saxon’s return and the return of the Time Lords, but I was still too angry and in too much pain to go back to Earth. I finally saw that Doctor for the last time at a bar on Sto. That’s when I realized that he wasn’t the same man as I had left after we returned the planets. He didn’t speak to me. He just looked at me, nodded, and walked away. I knew that was his way of saying goodbye and that I would never see him again. I have a feeling he was about to regenerate. Watching him walk away made me realize how much I missed both of you. The need to find you again became unbearable and I devised my plan on how to get to this world to find you again… and here I am.”

“But HOW did you get here?” the Doctor asked still curious. He reached over and put his hand on Jack’s knee to show his support.

Finishing off his glass of wine in one swallow, Jack answered. “I crossed my timeline. I went back to the day we left, hid behind the trees until I had walked away with Mickey and Martha (who are a couple now by the way) and then rode on the outside of the TARDIS here.”

Rose was startled for a moment by the news of Mickey and Martha and started to say something, but the Doctor beat her to it. “But the last time you rode on the outside of the TARDIS she threw a fit and sent us to the End of the Universe. There wasn’t a peep out of her on the way here and she never indicated that you were there.”

“I know and I thought it odd until I realized she accepted that I was there. Actually, it was more like she WANTED me there. I can’t explain why I think that other than I know it is right. As soon as you landed in Bad Wolf Bay, I jumped off and ran behind a dune so you wouldn’t see me.”

“So you saw what happened four months ago. Why didn’t you come forward?” Rose asked, finishing off her glass of wine and pouring another for her and Jack, before topping off the Doctor’s glass.

“Because I did see what happened.” Jack answered softly. “I knew that you both would need time to adjust to the situation and I would only be a distraction to that.”

The Doctor, remembering the stress and strain of the first two months after being stranded, said honestly, “Thank you for that. You are right. It was hard - for both of us. We both lost part of our soul and it took time for it to heal. Rose lost her Doctor and I lost the TARDIS.”

This time Rose squeezed the hand that held the Doctor’s, “It took me a while to come to terms, but what he did was the right thing. I still have my Doctor. It’s you. It has always been you, but now you are free to be mine as well. All I feel is sadness for what happened to him. I hope this regeneration will bring him more happiness and make him willing to seek out other companions again. He needs someone with him.” She kissed him again softly. “I just wish I could give you back the piece of your soul that was taken, as you gave me back mine.”

“Actually, I think that was the reason the TARDIS let me ride on her and didn’t let you know I was there,” Jack said. Giving Rose’s hand one last squeeze, he got up off the couch and walked over to the fireplace. Reaching out, he picked something up, wrapped his fingers around it, and walked back to the couch to stand in front of the Doctor. He held out his hand and slowly unwrapped his fingers. “I found this in the sand where the TARDIS had been after all of you left the beach.”

Stunned the Doctor looked at the crystalline piece of coral lying in Jack’s hand. He stammered and his hand shook as he reached out for it. “Jack… th… tha… that’s… that’s a-“

“Crystal from the heart of the TARDIS,” Jack finished for him as the coral started to glow.


	5. Chapter 5

The Doctor slowly reached for the softly pulsing crystal in Jack’s hand. Hesitantly, as if fearing it would disappear, he gently lifted it from Jack’s fingers. Suddenly, the room spun in a rush of blinding light and heat, the crystal singing a melody pulled directly from the Doctor’s soul. Tears poured out, unheeded, from the Doctor’s eyes as the moment of pure joy slowly faded.  
  
Looking down at the crystal, the Doctor gasped. Where it had been a single faintly pulsing crystal point about the length of his palm only a moment before, it now was a chunk of many crystalline points roughly the size of a softball. “WHAT!?!”  
  
“Doctor, the crystal just grew in your hand!” Rose said excitedly.  
  
“It must have fed off the lingering energy from the Time Vortex in me,” the Doctor’s voice was soft and full of wonder. “I always knew that TARDIS’s were grown from crystals back on Gallifrey, but the process was always kept a closely guarded secret. I was a youngling and not privy to the high secrets, when I first took off in my ol’ girl.”  
  
Rose smothered a smile at the Doctor’s affectionate reference to his TARDIS as ‘my ol’ girl’ but let her delight in the crystal show. On a whim, she asked, “Doctor, may I hold it?”  
  
A sudden flash of possession rocked the Doctor at Rose’s words. He didn’t want to let the crystal go. It was the first connection he had with his old life in so long. As if the crystal sensed his jealous thoughts, it pulsed at him in a way that could only be described as chiding. In a way beyond explanation, he KNEW the crystal had just given him a piece of its mind the way the TARDIS used to when she disapproved of something he said or did. Still... it was with reluctance that he handed the crystal cluster over to Rose.  
  
Rose regretted the words as soon as they had left her mouth. _This is a piece of his TARDIS, He should be able to enjoy it without my wanting to butt in and take a peek._ But after a moment the Doctor placed the crystal in her cupped hands.  
  
This time the light fractured into a rainbow of colors and the heat caused a wind to whip Rose’s hair back from her face. She stared into the crystal and it stared back into her. Three words whispered around the apartment in joy… **_Bad Wolf Returns._** Like with the Doctor, Rose could feel a song being pulled from her soul. Her song – the song of her time with the Doctor and the time she spent searching the worlds to find him again. This time, when the light faded, the crystal cluster was the size of a basketball.  
  
“It’s feeding off of us.” The Doctor said reverently. “It’s feeding off our memories and the time energy that clings to us as we travel in time.” He paused for a moment before continuing, “This body hasn’t been travelling as long, though the memories are eternal, which is why it grew for me. Rose, you once absorbed her heart and you have spent the last four years jumping through time and space. You were a much better source of energy for her, which is why she nearly quadrupled in size.”  
  
“Wow…” Rose couldn’t think of anything else to say. She still held the crystal on her lap, but she could hear a faint humming at the back of her mind, the way she often felt on the TARDIS. It was a comfort she hadn’t felt in seven years and it made her happy.  
  
“Doctor,” Jack said excitedly, “You may be able to get the TARDIS back! If she feeds on the energy from you and Rose, she may be able to grow again!!”  
  
The smile that crossed the Doctor’s face was one that his friends hadn’t seen in a very long time.  
  
“Jack,” Rose said, an idea crossing her mind, “You should hold take the crystal next. After all, you travelled with us too.”  
  
Jack backed away quickly, his hands held out in an almost defensive posture, “But I have had the crystal for four months and it has never done anything with me before.” Jack tried to hide how much that hurt him.  
  
“The thing is Jack,” the Doctor said gently, “it needed a Time Lord bump to start growing. It would have stayed as a piece of crystal for as long as it took until a child of Gallifrey touched it. It’s a built in failsafe.”  
  
“Are you sure, Doctor?” the hope not quite hidden in Jack’s voice.  
  
“I am. Take the crystal Jack. Of the three of us you have the most time energy to share.”  
  
Hesitantly, Jack sat back down on the couch next to Rose. He pulled the large chunk of crystal into his lap, marveling at how heavy it had become. Like it had done twice before, the crystal sang to Jack’s soul. It pulled out all of his hopes, all his fears, all of his actions – both good and terrible, and all of the secret desires that he wanted to keep hidden. Jack lost himself in the melody, the soothing crystalline song letting him know he was loved and its overwhelming gratitude for bringing it back to life, for feeding it the energy of the ages… for loving the ones, that the TARDIS held so dear.  
  
Tears were streaming down all three companions faces as the melody faded. Jack could feel the wetness, but for once in his life, he wasn’t ashamed of it. He looked to the crystal and gasped. As it sat on the floor in front of him, it was now roughly two feet in diameter and stood nearly three feet tall.  
  
“Oh Jack,” Rose said in awe. She slid her hand into his and set her head on his shoulder. The crystal pulsed quickly as they touched. “You have had a long road, haven’t you?”  
  
“Sometimes it seems eternal,” Jack said for the first time without bitterness. “But for the moment, I wouldn’t trade any of it.” He reached across Rose and took the Doctor’s other hand. “Everything was worth it to be together with both of you again.”  
  
Once again, the crystal pulsed when Jack made contact with the Doctor. This time, though, the Doctor noticed, and with noticing the excitement grew. “Jack, Rose! Did you just see that?? When you two touched, the crystal pulsed. When Jack took my hand it pulsed again. It’s still feeding off our energy. That means it will continue to grow as long as the three of us are near it!!”  
  
Rose gave them both her signature grin, before saying, “Well, Jack… Are there more rooms down the hall? How would you feel about a couple of flat-mates?”  
  
“I do have another bedroom which is currently being used as a quasi-office. It’s almost as large as the other one and has an attached bathroom.” Jack hesitated, “I don’t know if you are comfortable sharing a room. We could always look for another flat.”  
  
“Ummm… Jack. I don’t think that looking for another flat would work,” Rose said and pointed to the crystal. Somehow while they were talking it had repositioned itself into the exact center of the room and fused itself to the floor.  
  
“Well, that’s annoying. Now I need to rearrange the furniture, not to mention, I probably won’t be getting my deposit back.” Jack responded, slightly annoyed.  
  
“Oh, it’s all good,” the Doctor said cheerfully, pushing the couch back two feet and slightly to the right. “See. All better.”  
  
Jack groaned at the drag marks the Doctor left in the wood floor. Sighing in resignation, he said, “OK, it works, I guess. But will one room be ok?”  
  
“Oh Rose can have it, I can sleep on the couch.”  
  
Jack glanced at them, surprise clearly written on his face, though he suppressed the question. Rose, however, saw it and decided that Jack needed to know the truth. “We are living together but we still have separate bedrooms.” She paused, took a breath and continued, “We are still rebuilding and we are taking it slow. It’s still awkward at times, but getting less so as time goes on.” Rose turned a bright shade of pink.  
  
“So for right now - no room sharing.” The Doctor agreed. He pulled Rose into his arms and kissed her swiftly. Grinning internally as Rose gave a little moan as his lips teased hers.  
  
“Though it could change in the future. Right, Rose?”  
  
She grinned at him, the kiss having washed away the awkwardness. “Aye.”  
  
Jack looked at both of them before saying with a devilish grin, “So does that mean this is going to be a flat full of flirting and sexual tension for the foreseeable future? Dear gods, how will I cope?”  
  
Both the Doctor and Rose were unable to resist the cheeky grin on Jack’s face. Looking at each other and looking at Jack, both slid back to their time in the TARDIS and the way they would all tease each other. _It just feels right to flirt with Jack as well as the Doctor,_ Rose thought. Out loud, she said, “I dunno, do you still have that inflatable sheeple, we found on Raxis IV?”  
  
Jack’s response was a growled as he pounced on her, carrying her down onto the couch and tickling her mercilessly. “That was supposed to be a secret! You swore you wouldn’t say anything about that.” Jack relished the feel of her squirming under him as he relentlessly attacked her sides.  
  
“I… Aaack… Lemme go… Sto… Plea… Jack!” Rose could barely speak between breaths. Finally Jack took pity on her and helped her sit up on the couch. Still grinning, he looked up to see the Doctor’s reaction.  
  
The Doctor was smiling down at both of them fondly, enjoying watching the banter between them as he had so long ago. Still, it was time he joined the fun, “Seriously Jack, you thought you kept the sheeple a secret? I could hear the sounds from my room. Besides, Rose has other methods for diffusing tension. Namely a high powered mini semi-sonic device she calls The Captain.”  
  
“HEY!!!” Rose turned beet red, while Jack just turned to look at her giving her his most dazzling smile.  
  
“The Captain? REEEEAAAALLLLYYYYY?”  
  
“It’s a massager and I didn’t name it after you.” Rose blustered, bursting his bubble, “It reminded me of something that I saw once on an old rerun of Star Trek and since Captain Kirk was using it, I called it the Captain.”  
  
“Too bad, though a young 20th Century Bill Shatner at his prime? I could see that.” Jack teased her a little bit more before turning back to the Doctor. “I know Time Lords were all repressed about sexuality and classified it as a necessary evil to release the body’s tension on a road to greater knowledge rather than the delightful emotional intensity that humans feel, but even you had to have had moments where you had to release the tension.”  
  
 _More than you could ever know, Jack. Especially once you and Rose both were travelling with me…_ Plastering on a bright and slightly fake smile, the Doctor responded, “Hands. Handy thing hands. Always there when you need them.”  
  
Rose and Jack laughed, though both were also secretly imagining the Doctor working himself with his oh-so-clever hands. Shaking off the thought, and promising himself that he could revisit it later Jack said, “Well then, that answers one of the 15 unanswerable questions… Now since you both are going to be staying for a while, maybe we should take a look at the room and see about getting some stuff here for you.”  
  
“We can do that. I will call Dad and explain the situation. I will make sure that we are temporarily reassigned to Torchwood Cardiff. It shouldn’t be a problem. We can always pop over to London on a zeppelin if we are really needed.”  
  
“Sounds good. Rose if you want to make that call, the Doctor and I can start moving stuff around to make room for a bed and dresser. The desk may need to stay, but I haven’t really been working on it, so it can be cleared off and used however you need. The closet’s empty.” Jack said. “Doctor, my closet is big enough to share if you want or there is a closet in the hallway you can use.”  
  
Rose walked toward the back terrace to make the phone calls, while Jack propelled the Doctor down the hall to the spare room. Idly as she passed by, she touched the warm crystals in the center of the room. _Everything is happening so fast. We just ran into Jack this afternoon and now we are moving in with him. It feels right, though. Like old times. This time though, there isn’t a TARDIS to distract us when we start getting itchy. I am so close to being there with the Doctor. I want him. I wanted to shag him senseless so many times before and now there is nothing stopping us, but our own insecurities… and now Jack. I don’t know if I could shag the Doctor with Jack in the same flat. It would seem wrong in some way. No, not wrong. Unfair. It wouldn’t be fair to Jack._ A niggling voice told her to be honest with herself. _It wouldn’t be fair to the Doctor either… because now that he is here with us again, part of me wants Jack as badly as I want the Doctor._  
  
Her thoughts still in a tangle, she walked over to the glass door and pulled out her phone. Within moments she was caught up in the mundane details of trying to shift work and living arrangements as she stared out the glass windows into the Cardiff night. Behind her, the crystal grew another spire and hummed as it acknowledged the desires that it had unknowingly just been fed.  
  



	6. Chapter 6

Within an hour, Rose had confirmed everything and there would be movers bringing in some of her furniture and clothing from her flat in London to Jack’s flat in Cardiff. She made sure that the Doctor’s clothes and hair products (dear gods that man had enough gel and mousse to start his own styling salon) were also brought along.  
  
Walking back inside she looked for both the two men. Out of her eye she saw another one of those crazy cat clocks with the eyes and tail that moved back and forth on the wall between the kitchen and the living area. _Huh, never really thought that was Jack’s style. I wonder if he was the one who put the other one up in Torchwood. It would kind of make sense, I guess. I should ask him about it or at least ask if he minds if I move it somewhere else. I swear it creeps me out. It’s like it is watching me._ A noise from Jack’s bedroom alerted to where they currently were. She turned to go to them and promptly forgot all about the clock.  
  
Rose walked into Jack’s bedroom to see both of them sprawled out on Jack’s bed watching the telly. “Telly? Really Doctor? Big Brother of all things? After everything that happened on Gamestation, I would have thought that would be the LAST thing you would want to watch!! Seriously - I had no idea that you were a reality show junkie. And Jack… Explain please.”  
  
The Doctor looked sheepish, “Well I have been flipping through the telly late at night after you have gone to bed, since I don’t need quite as much sleep as you do, and I stumbled across this world’s version of the show and it sucked me in. I dunno why really, but it is addicting. We can watch something else.”  
  
Jack was distracted by the way Rose had put her hands on her hips and thrust them to one side, despite the fact that she was glaring at them both. _I want to kiss that look off her face._ Shaking himself mentally and locking that thought away, he responded instead with a trademark smile and said, “Well, I only have the one TV and it’s here in the bedroom, since it is where I watch it. I do have a stereo in the living room if you want music instead.”  
  
“Actually what I want at the moment is some food. Anyone else hungry?” Rose answered.  
  
 _Not really for food._ Images of the three of them doing naughty things to each other flashed through Jack’s mind, the way they used to on the TARDIS. But by now he was used to pulling them back and said instead, “I could go for a bite. Wanna grab something or order in?”  
  
The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and looked at the time. “Does that little Chinese place down the street exist in this timeline? Do they deliver this late? Are they as good?”  
  
Rose laughed. Since they had tried the place so long ago in the other Cardiff, the Doctor had been obsessed with their mu-shu pork and fried green beans.  
  
“You mean the Golden Dragon? Yes it’s here too and actually even better than the old one.” Jack replied with a grin. “They are open until 1am but they usually stop delivery at 11.” Jack looked his watch at saw it was a quarter to midnight. “I can usually get Mr. Chin to make an exception for me. Should I order the usual?” Jack grinned, remembering the Doctor’s preferences as well as Rose’s.  
  
“Jack, is there anyone you don’t have wrapped around your finger?” Rose asked curiously.  
  
“You will just have to find out for yourself,” Jack winked as he pulled out his phone, dialed and spoke in flawless Cantonese to the person on the other end.  
  
“Show off,” the Doctor grumbled as he noted the impressed look on Rose’s face.  
  
She turned around and looked at him, giving him a wink and her trademark tongue in teeth grin. Now that Jack had stepped into the other room, she slipped off her shoes and made her way to the obscenely large bed. She crawled across it to the Doctor, a look of pure mischief on her face.  
  
The Doctor gulped. He knew that look.  
  
“Jealous Doctor?” She stayed on all fours, hovering above him.  
  
“Never, after all I can speak several languages even when the TARDIS wasn’t translating for me.” His voice trailed off as she started to lower her arms to bring her closer to his lips. _Please oh please let her come closer. I need her lips. I need her._  
  
“Ahem,” Jack said sardonically from the doorway as he unabashedly checked out the curve of Rose’s ass in her jeans, “I would prefer that you not make out on my bed unless I happen to be a part of it.”  
  
Rose blushed but quickly flipped over, so she was seated next to the doctor. “That could be arranged.” She added flippantly unaware of the stunned look of desire that crossed the Doctor’s face. “Really Jack, this bed is big enough that you could have an orgy on one side and still have someone sleep undisturbed in the other.”  
  
Jack hadn’t missed the expression that flickered across the Doctor’s face. _Interesting. That wasn’t a look of jealousy. It was … interest? Hmmm…_ Tucking that away for future consideration, he flirted right back “How do you know I haven’t tried it?”  
  
“Um … Yes… Well… Is there food on the way?” the Doctor interrupted before it could get any deeper. He knew both Rose and Jack’s tendency to flirt whenever they could. _Without the TARDIS’s filter it could devolve faster than he was quite ready for. Not that I am a prude… well not really anyway… not anymore… I just don’t know how to flirt. They both make it look so easy._  
  
Taking pity on the Doctor, Jack dropped the teasing undertones. “Yes. It should be here in 10 minutes. Do you want to eat in the kitchen or in here? We can watch a movie or something.”  
  
“Here actually sounds good,” Rose replied as she sat back in the pillows. “It’s been a long day. It would be kind of nice to relax and watch a movie before crashing. The movers won’t be here until tomorrow, but the couch is big enough that we can both crash there for the night.”  
  
“Nonsense. You can have my bed. The Doctor can have the couch. I will sleep on the floor.”  
  
“That’s not fair to you, Jack.”  
  
“I insist.” He put on his serious face, and Rose knew she was outmaneuvered. That didn’t stop her from glaring at him.  
  
“You can glare all you want, Rosie, I am not changing my mind. I am a big boy. I can handle a night on the floor.” The ring of the doorbell was a distraction Jack welcomed. _I just won’t tell you that I will cherish the smell of you on my pillows in the morning._ “Food is here.”  
  
The Doctor jumped up to grab utensils while Jack paid for the food. Bringing in the bag and setting it on the bed, he sat down on the other side of Rose, knowing the Doctor would be returning to his former position. Opening it, he handed Rose her shrimp chow fun, set the mu-shu pork in front of the Doctor’s place, grabbed his Kung Pao and set the order of green beans in the center so they could all snack.  
  
The Doctor handed each of them a pair of chopsticks as he sat back down, his mind flashing back to the many times that they had shared a companionable meal and movie on the TARDIS. They would laugh and debate the merits of whatever they were watching. It always felt so good to be there with them. It felt right. Perfect. _Even when Rose and Jack would fall asleep, I didn’t want to move them._  
  
“So what are we watching?” Jack asked.  
  
“What is on?” Rose countered as she flipped on the channel index. “Oh! It’s a Star Trek Marathon!”  
  
“Thinking about your ‘Captain’ again?” Jack ducked as Rose tried to grab the nearest pillow to hit him with.  
  
“You just wish that you could watch what I do with the Captain.”  
  
“Oi.. Pipe down! The opening credits are starting,” The Doctor said loudly, even as he heard Jack’s mutter under his breath ‘More than you know’. _Jack is right though. I could hear her when she used it in the past and it was all I could do not to go to her then. Now… I don’t know what I would do. And Jack poses a new dilemma. He wants her too. I have always known that. Just as part of her has always wanted him. Can I deal with that? I can’t claim Rose - she has always done what she wants; but I don’t know what I would do if I lost her again._ A niggle whispered at the back of his mind. _Don’t forget about Jack. You have wanted him too. Even when you ran from him, part of you still wanted him. Why can’t you have both? But that would be wrong… wouldn’t it?_  


****************

  
The sound of end credits woke the Doctor. Still sleepy he blearily opened his eyes to see the time. Realizing that he couldn’t see the clock, he started to shift positions when a faint grumble stopped him. He could smell green apple and immediately knew it was the shampoo Rose favored. A strand of her golden hair tickled his cheek and he realized the weight of her on his chest. That she had fallen asleep during the movie was unsurprising, but the fact that she had instinctly cuddled into his chest made him warm. Moving his arm to brush away a stray strand that was making its way across her cheek, the Doctor noticed something else. Jack had also fallen asleep and was spooning Rose, his arm across her hip and his hand resting on the Doctor’s chest. The warmth in his chest increased. _I should get up and move them but they look so peaceful. So comfortable. In fact, it would be cruel to do so._ A yawn punctuated his thought train. _Silly human body needing at least 6 hours of sleep. Well I guess it won’t hurt me to stay here for a little longer._ He was able to free a hand enough to grab the remote and turn off the telly. _In fact, I am actually quite comfortable myself…_ In moments the Doctor had drifted back to sleep.

Jack was the first to wake fully - the light streaming through the window indicating it was early morning. _So much for the floor… Not that I am complaining._ Rose was in his arms, he could smell the faintest trace of her perfume on the sweet spot behind her ear. He could feel the brush of the Doctor’s hand against his own where it rested on his chest. _Gods to wake up this way every morning… I would give so much._

Rose stretched and Jack took that as his cue to pull back to a slightly less intimate position before she woke completely. It was only a matter of seconds before her chocolate eyes opened and she murmured sleepily, “’Ello…”

Grinning Jack said, “Hello.”

“Hello.” She said again in automatic response before realizing the position she was in – sleeping between two men and curled up into the Doctor. “Oh…” She blushed prettily as full consciousness set in.

“Well, you won in the end.” Jack teased.

“Wot do you mean?” Rose’s mind was still fuzzy.

“I didn’t sleep on the floor.” Jack grinned at her. “Come on, let’s go make coffee.”

Rose looked at the still sleeping Doctor. It was odd for him to still be asleep. _He must have been really tired. I can wake him after we have coffee. The movers should be here in a couple of hours anyway. Best get ready._

Smiling she took the hand that Jack stretched out to her. He pulled her to her feet but refused to let go of her hand as he led her to the kitchen. Rose secretly relished the feel but then immediately felt slightly guilty. _The Doctor is still asleep in the other room… But it’s Jack…_

Without realizing she was doing it, she traced her fingers across the crystal as she walked by. The hum soothed her on deep level – taking her confusion and turning it into normality. _Why is it wrong to want both?_ It seemed to say.

“Rose – c’mon!” Jack pulled on her hand again.

“OK. Ok. I am coming.” She turned back and followed him into the kitchen.

The crystal hummed behind her and grew another spire.


	7. Chapter 7

Shortly after 8am the movers arrived with Rose and the Doctor’s things. She started to direct them where to put things, but every time she opened her mouth, Jack interrupted with a suggestion of the best position for it – directing the movers without a second thought. _It’s rather amusing actually and it is his flat even if this will technically be my room. He is kind of cute when he is bossy._  
  
“No. I said against the wall not kitty-corner.” Jack grumbled as he had the poor delivery men shift the bed for the third time. “It has to be exactly right.”  
  
“Jack, since you have this and the Doctor is in the shower, I am going to run down to the shop down the street and grab us some bagels. Any preference?” Rose asked hiding her smile.  
  
“Cinnamon Raisin please,” Jack said absently. “No! Three feet to the left.”  
  
Rose slipped out of the flat, jogged down the stairs, and stepped out into the crisp autumn morning. She admired the leaves that were in the process of changing colors, enjoying the beauty and peacefulness after the last few busy weeks. Walking into the bagel shop, her eyes were drawn to the clock on the wall. It was the same creepy cat. _Something is odd here. I am seeing that clock everywhere. I need to talk to the Doctor about it when I get back._ Tearing her eyes away from it, she walked up to the middle aged man working the counter. “Good Morning. A cinnamon raisin, a plain, and an everything bagel please.”  
  
“I ‘spose ya wont cream cheese wit that,” he grumbled clearly annoyed.  
  
“Yes please,” Rose replied. “If it’s not too much of a bother.” _What is up with this bloke? I just want a few bagels. Since this a bagel shop that shouldn’t be too difficult._  
  
“Here.” He thrust the bag at her roughly. “That’ll be five quid.”  
  
Rose grabbed the bag and headed back toward the door, casting one last look at the cat clock. It shimmered slightly as if it was surrounded by a heat wave before returning to normal. The tail ticking the seconds away and the eyes following – seeing everything and nothing at all. _Definitely weird._  
  
Rose took her time walking back to the flat. _After all, I am not in any kind of hurry. We are just waiting on another assignment from Dad – could be tomorrow could be weeks. This is the part of Torchwood I don’t miss. I wonder if I could join Tosh and Suz in their study of the Beltaran gauntlet. It looked like it could be useful in some way._ Her thoughts stayed idle as she entered the building and started walking up the stairs; however a loud crash from above soon had her running up the stairs two at a time.  
  
“What is going on?” Rose walked in to see her bedroom mirror shattered in a thousand pieces on the living room floor.  
  
“Those clumsy clods dropped it,” Jack said irritated.  
  
“Hey now Jack, they wouldn’t have if you hadn’t been giving them conflicting information for the last 10 minutes. It’s a heavy mirror,” the Doctor stood in front of the workers protecting them from Jack’s wrath. “  
  
It’s ok. I needed a new one anyway.” Rose said soothingly. Turning to the lead mover she asked, “How much more do you have to bring up?”  
  
“Just a couple more boxes, ma’am.”  
  
“Why don’t you grab them and set them in the hall. Then you can leave. I can put the rest away. I am sure you have other jobs to do today.” “  
  
"Yes ma’am,” the worker replied, obvious relief in his voice.  
  
Turning to Jack, Rose laid a hand on his arm and watched as he visibly relaxed at the touch. She asked quietly, “Are you ok?”  
  
“I don’t know Rosie,” Jack said. “I am not usually so strung out. It is like something was pushing my buttons beyond where I could control it and the littlest thing was driving me crazy. It stopped once you touched me.” Sighing he continued, “I will grab a broom and clean that up. I owe you a mirror.”  
  
Rose looked at the cat clock on the wall. The same faint shimmer she had seen earlier surrounded it for a moment before disappearing. _I need to talk to the Doctor about this. But it can wait until after we eat._ Stepping into her room to remove her jacket, she looked up and saw another cat clock on her bedroom wall. Frozen in shock, Rose dropped the bag of bagels. ”Doctor! Jack!”  
  
The Doctor and Jack both heard the soft plop of the bag and the odd tone in Rose’s voice and ran down the hall to her room. They saw her staring at a blank spot on the wall.  
  
“What is it Rose?” The Doctor asked.  
  
“Are you ok, Rosie?” Jack let the worry show in his voice.  
  
Shaking she pointed at the wall.  
  
“What is it Rose?” The Doctor said again more softly this time as if to calm a frightened child. “What do you see?”  
  
“That crazy cat clock. They are everywhere. Jack is this some kind of bad joke? I never would have thought those damn things were your style and I know that didn’t come from my flat.”  
  
“Rose, honey, there isn’t anything there.”  
  
“Yes there is. I swear,” She looked to the puzzled expressions on their faces. “Are you seriously telling me that you can’t see it?”  
  
Reaching into his jacket pocket, the Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver. Holding it to the space on the wall where she pointed, he scanned for any readings. “Hmm… There is a bio-dampener here... Blocking my readings… Odd… Feels… Rose. Jack. Step back!”  
  
Jack pulled Rose into the hallway and held her against his chest. The Doctor twisted some levers on his screwdriver and pointed it at the wall. “Ha!” he shouted and a fuzzy outline of the cat clock appeared. A few more twists and the whole thing appeared. He approached it closely and scanned it again, trying to get a reading on it. “It appears to be an energy absorption device of some sort. Nasty bit o’ work. Feeds off of strong emotions. I have rendered it inert. You said there are more of these Rose?”  
  
“Yes. There are two others in the flat. One in the kitchen and one in Jack’s bedroom.”  
  
“Show me.” Rose took him to each and watched as he disabled each one finally breathing a sigh of relief when they were all done.  
  
“So Doctor, what are they again and what do they do?” Jack asked. “More importantly, who did this?”  
  
“They absorb emotion. They can feed off of happy emotions but they get more of a juice out of negative ones, I am afraid. They can subliminally push if needed to get a reaction out of whoever is close by. As to who or what did this – I have no idea.”  
  
“Well that explains the behavior of the guy at the bagel shop. He was downright rude. There was a cat clock on Jack, the wall there too. I saw it almost shimmer as I was leaving.”  
  
“Harvesting the emotion. Yup.” The Doctor ran his hand through his hair. “It also explains the way Jack was acting. For some reason, Rose, you seem to be immune from the effects. You could see the devices where we couldn’t and once you were in the room touching Jack, it calmed him too. Hmmm…”  
  
“Well, I guess that means we won’t be waiting very long for our next assignment. It practically jumped in our lap. I wonder why it was attracted so strongly to us though.”  
  
Jack tilted his head toward the large crystal in the center of the room. “Our emotions haven’t exactly been calm the last 24 hours… and they would have had a steady stream of emotion with all of us living together.”  
  
“True enough, I guess.” Rose looked at them both before going back to her room to retrieve the bag of bagels. She set it on the table and pulled out plates from the cabinet. “Let’s eat.”  
  
“When did you get this unflappable Rosie? I can’t believe you can sit there calmly and eat a bagel.”  
  
Rose’s eyes held far too much emotion as she responded quietly, “I have seen too much in the last seven years Jack. I have to let the emotion go when it comes to alien tech or it will remind me of how many friends I have lost so much pain and suffering. How alone I was for so long. If I let myself feel it, it would drive me insane.”  
  
The Doctor put his arms around her shoulders and held her for a few moments. “I can’t promise that you won’t feel it again, but you aren’t alone any more. If I have my way, you won’t be alone ever again. I am here.”  
  
“We are here.” Jack put one hand on the Doctor’s shoulder and caressed the other down Rose’s cheek. “I won’t leave you either of you again.”  
  
Rose leaned into the different caresses and let herself enjoy the warmth they gave freely. Turning she looked up at them. “I believe you both and I won’t leave either. Now sit and eat your bagels.”  
  
“Yes ma’am!” Jack gave her a mock salute.  
  
“After, you can finish cleaning up that mess and we can go mirror shopping.” Rose gave Jack a wink before taking a bite of her bagel.  
  
The crystal across the room hummed and grew another spire.  
  



	8. Chapter 8

Mirror shopping only took an hour as Rose knew exactly where to go and what she wanted. Jack was slightly disgruntled to have his decorative suggestions disregarded, but Rose was adamant. “Sorry Jack, I know it’s your flat but it will be my room. That one is more my style even if it doesn’t specifically match the décor.” Rose nodded to the mirror encased in a wrought iron frame shaped like leaves. “besides, the iron will help neutralize some of the excess xenon rays.”  
  
“You’re hot when you talk all sciencey and nerdy,” Jack flirted while the Doctor just rolled his eyes.  
  
“Ya?” Rose smirked, “well then I guess the Doctor is an inferno, cuz that’s the only way he talks.” She winked at the Doctor.  
  
“Very True.” Jack gave the Doctor one of his trademark grins.  
  
“Oi. Are you two done? We need to remove one of those clocks and take it back to Torchwood for examination.”  
  
“Take the one from my room please.”  
  
“Why not just remove them all?” Jack asked. “Rose was right. They aren’t exactly my style.”  
  
“Rose…” the Doctor gestured for her to answer.  
  
Turning to Jack, she said, “They are obviously harvesting emotion but we don’t know if they are the actual entities or just the collectors for another race. Until we know more, we have to reactivate the others or at least make them appear to be functioning or we may never find out who is behind this. They already know that I am immune to the effects, so it would make sense that I had the one in my room removed.”  
  
“I get that, but I don’t want that thing manipulating my emotions.”  
  
“I can damp down the effects, but for the time being, it might be more beneficial to have a back-up plan,” the Doctor said hesitation in his voice.  
  
“What are you thinking, Doctor?” Rose asked.  
  
“That Jack and I remain in close contact with you. Skin to skin preferred until we determine how long a period of time your immunity covers us. Not constant because that would be suspicious, but it will mean that we will be touching you more than usual.”  
  
“Skin to skin?” Jack asked his voice choked slightly as his mind raced.  
  
The Doctor leveled a look at Jack, “When Rose grabbed your arm it broke the cycle. When we rushed into the room I automatically grabbed her hand which broke the cycle for me. I think any kind of touch would work. It doesn’t necessarily have to be intimate.”  
  
 _But what if I wanted it to be?_ Rose thought to herself. _I love the fact that you automatically grab my hand, but I want more skin to skin contact with you Doctor… and I wouldn’t mind a bit more with Jack either._ She gave herself a mental slap. _What has gotten into you girl? You spent seven years trying to find the Doctor. You finally get him or at least a version of him that is yours alone and you want Jack too? Greedy Girl._ Realizing that arguing with herself was pointless, Rose said out loud instead, “We could make that work. If I start to notice either of you acting odd I will let you know. Now… Let’s take this mirror home and grab that clock from my room. We really need to get a good look at it.”  
  


********************

Within an hour they were walking back across the square to Torchwood. As they rode down the elevator hidden in the back of the shop that fronted for the organization, they could hear voices arguing. By the time they had reached the bottom floor there was a full scale screaming match going on between Tosh, Susan and Owen.

“The clock!” Rose said as she rushed out of the elevator.

“What? You mean there is one here too?” Jack said as he followed just as quickly.

“I’ll show you in a moment,” Rose said hurriedly as she reached out to grab the hands of her two friends.

The effect was instantaneous. They looked at her like they were emerging from a daze and immediately stopped speaking, trying to figure out what had happened. Once Rose broke the spell on the women, she walked over to Owen who had just grabbed a stapler off the closest desk and was in the process of getting ready to lob it across the room at the two others. He was wearing a full lab coat and latex gloves. No skin was showing, so grabbing his hand did not mitigate the effects of the clock. “Owen, I apologize for this,” Rose said before slapping him hard across the face.

“Wot the HELL!” Owen snapped out of his daze quicker than the others, due to the adrenaline rush from the slap as he stared first at Rose, then at the stapler in his hand, before setting it back on the desk and rubbing his cheek.

“There is an alien device that is aggravating and harvesting human emotions,” Jack said as he dumped the inert cat clock on the desk. “For some reason we haven’t determined yet, Rose is immune to its effects and currently she is the only one who can see the devices immediately.” Turning to Rose he continued, “Rose will you please show me where the device is? We need to dismantle it completely here. My staff doesn’t have the same options we have.”

“Of course, Jack,” Rose said as she led both him and the Doctor to the wall on which it was located. “But we could be tipping our hand completely if we dismantle that one.”

“I don’t want my team at each other’s throats and you won’t be here all the time to touch them and snap them out of it.”

“Jack… We do have those shackles from the Cartan slave trade in the vault. None of us can stand to touch them because of the negative emotions they give out, but if these things are feeding on heavy emotions we could put a couple of those in front of the devices and let it feed off that energy.” Susan offered.

“We could also seal them inside a Thracian bubble so it doesn’t leak out into the workspace,” Tosh added.

“Brilliant!” The Doctor beamed after making short work of the bio-dampening field to allow visibility of the device without shutting it down completely.

Within a relatively short period of time, Rose had shown the team three more clocks stationed around the area and the team has responded by placing the Cartan shackles on a pedestal next to each one and surrounded both items with a Thracian bubble. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief as the tension in the air cleared. Curiosity about the device quickly set in, so it was a group of five that stood around the table as the Doctor slowly dismantled the device.

“We know that it harvests emotion, but it doesn’t look like it has any sort of neural network so this alone is not a sentient being but it is a collection device to be used by someone else.” The Doctor said before tinkering deeper, muttering to himself, “Oho my beauty… Oh you are gorgeous… Clever, clever, little thing…”

“Does he always talk to inanimate objects like they can actually hear him?” Owen asked curiously, as Rose and Jack grinned at each other.

“Always!” They said in unison, causing the others to laugh and the Doctor to look up in distraction.

“What?!?” He asked, completely confused as he missed the conversation, which only served to make the others laugh a bit harder.

Biting her lip to hold back a smile, she walked over to lean just over his shoulder, her hair brushing along his neck as she looked down to see him holding a small mechanical device in his hand. “What is it Doctor?”

The Doctor had to fight down a reaction as the softness of her hair and the feel of her breath near his cheek caused a tightening in his groin. He took a deep breath before answering her. “It looks like a transmitter. It is currently set to relate its location, but I can modify it to be a relay or communication device if needed. It’s just a matter of determining when or if we want to initiate contact.”

“We should find out who they are and what they want.” Rose responded. “This world is under our protection.”

“Rosie, I agree that we need to find out who and what these creatures are, but I think there is something else we need to do first. We need to find out why you are immune and if there is any way to make the rest of us as well.”

“Good point Jack. This will keep for a few more days.’ The Doctor said as he set the piece back on the desk with a last little caress.

*******************

Three hours later they were still locked in an intense discussion about what could be causing Rose to be the only person not affected.

“Ok. So what have I done that none of you haven’t?”

“You are from a parallel world.” Susan offered.

“True but so are Jack and the Doctor.”

“Well, we were affected, but it wasn’t as violent a reaction as what happened here… So there may be more to that theory.”

“As far as we know, the Doctor and Jack jumped worlds once each, correct?” Tosh asked and smiled as both the men nodded. “How many worlds have you jumped Rose?”

“Too many to count.” Rose said, hardness creeping into her voice.

“Ha! I have an idea.” The doctor whipped a pair of red and blue 3D glasses out of his inner jacket pocket. Rose having seen them before, raised an eyebrow in question as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver and held them to the glasses. The lenses turned purple and yellow. Putting them on, he stared at each person in the group individually. “That’s definitely part of it. Rose had it pegged earlier – xenon rays. Captured and psychically linked to the aura of a person who has world jumped… Here look.” The Doctor handed the glasses to Jack.

Jack looked at first his team and saw nothing. He looked at the Doctor and could see a faint swarm of pinpricks that seemed to dance about 6 inches from his body. When he looked at his hand he saw the same. However when he looked at Rose, he gasped. The particles were almost a solid shell around her body of silvery dancing particles. “Oh Rosie… I am so sorry.” Jack’s voice was quiet as he removed the glasses and handed them back to the doctor.

“I knew that they were there, but I take it from your reaction and the Doctor’s that there is more than I thought. Thankfully they don’t generally interfere…”

“But you are starting to exhibit higher than normal human psychic tendencies, aren’t you?” the Doctor said, taking her hand in his. He rubbed his thumb along the back absently.

“Yes, though it’s not like I can read minds or anything,” Rose said hurriedly at the incredulous stares of the Torchwood team. “It generally manifests as a really strong hunch. It is one of the reasons I knew exactly when I had reached the right world and I knew that Donna would be the key to saving it.” She took a deep breath before continuing, a faint blush on her cheeks, “It has also heightens my emotional response to … certain stimuli. It’s one of the reasons I had to learn how to lock down emotion when I need to.”

“That may also be why the cat-clocks don’t affect you,” Jack said quietly as his heart ached for her experiences. “You can lock down emotion, which means it can’t harvest from you. When you touch us, your psychic empathic ability breaks the link between us and the clock as well.” Without realizing he was doing so, he laid a gentle hand on her lower back, offering his own form of reassurance.

“That makes sense actually,” Rose said as she instinctively leaned back into his hand and squeezed the Doctor’s hand as it still held on of hers. “It also means that in theory, you all could do it since it a learned skill not an innate one, though it isn’t easy. Locking out emotion is so difficult for humans. We feel, even when we don’t want to.”

“Tell me about it,” the Doctor muttered under his breath.

“We can work on that though,” Jack smiled at her. “But for now, what should we do?”

“Honestly,” Rose said, “We have it contained for the moment. I need to send a message to Dad before we proceed any further in trying to establish contact. But it is getting late and I can see everyone is drained from the emotional overload earlier. We can pick this up tomorrow.”

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Jack agreed. “Go home, rest, and we will see all of you in the morning. Late Morning.”

“Yeah boss.” Susan said. She and Tosh gathered their things and walked out hand in hand, while Owen grabbed his bag and darted after them.

“They are going to need the contact of their loved ones tonight to counteract the effects of what we saw earlier, aren’t they?” Jack asked the Doctor as Rose stepped away to do a final sweep of the area.

“Yes. We are lucky in that it didn’t affect us as strongly,” the Doctor said, “though I admit I wouldn’t mind a bit of snogging to chase off the last of the effects. Damn human body and human reactions.”

“Why Doctor, I thought you would never ask!!” Jack teased as the Doctor swallowed wrong and started coughing. Grinning, Jack thumped him on the back. “I am kidding! Rose will be happy to oblige, though you have to know that my offer is at least half sincere. I could use a good bit of kissing myself, but unfortunately, I don’t have anyone at the moment, so I will have to suffer through.”

“You know she would kiss you too, if you asked,” the Doctor said quietly as he saw the object of his current statement turn and start to walk back to them. “It took me a long time to admit it to myself, and even longer to get over the jealousy I felt at the idea, but that was a different man. Part of her loves you Jack. She may not be quite ready to admit it to herself, but I see it, and I can’t afford to be jealous anymore. I know you love her. You need to tell her.”

“What about you?”

“She loves me and I love her. That isn’t going to end and I refuse to give her up. But you and I are both from different times – times where loving more than one person isn’t considered taboo. I can share her if I need to and I think you could too.”

“You know I could. But how do we convince her?”

The Doctor sighed, “Unfortunately, for that I have no idea.”


	9. Chapter 9

Upon arriving back at their flat, Jack immediately went into the kitchen and rummaged around the kitchen looking for something to make them for dinner. It had been a standing joke on the TARDIS that Jack was only one who could cook a decent meal without burning, destroying or otherwise making all of them sick. _(The only exception was that Rose somehow managed to make the absolute best grilled cheese sandwiches and the Doctor could make a mean mashed potato.)_ They used to love to tease him about it, and he would counter that a well-made dinner was a guaranteed seduction skill – No one could resist him after. He would then threaten to make them a meal they wouldn’t forget. _I never did try to actually do it, though, must have been that redirect filter on the TARDIS. Now though… I won’t do it tonight, but it will happen. Soon._  
  
Rose smiled as she heard Jack bustling around in the kitchen. _Just like old times._ Walking back to her room, she sat on her bed and dialed Pete’s direct line.  
  
“Torchwood. Pete Tyler speaking.”  
  
“Hi Dad. Just wanted to give you an update on a situation that is occurring.”  
  
“You have been there less than 48 hours. Just your luck that something is off. What is happening? Does this have anything to do with why you and the Doctor suddenly moved to Cardiff and sent my staff into a frenzy trying to pack your room and have it ready to be delivered in less than 12 hours?”  
  
“Umm… yeah, I am sorry about that but I thought it would be smarter for me to set up my own room, rather than try to share one with Jack or the Doctor.”  
  
“As a father I approve of that statement.”  
  
“Thought you might.” Rose grinned into the phone. “But actually the crystal seems to be doing fine. It has grown a few more spires and is getting large. The Doctor isn’t sure what exactly is supposed to happen, since he was never privy to the growth of a TARDIS before, but if that is what is happening, we need to watch it and let it follow its own natural course.” Her voice got softer. “I need to give that back to him, if I can. He has done so much for me.”  
  
“I agree… though I happen to think that you have done more for him than he has for you, but that may just be my prejudices. How is that smarmy Captain Jack? That man is something else. I purposely sent him to a location where the staff was bonded and could resist his charms… as least I hope they can. I would be worried about you Rosie, but since you and the Doctor traveled with him before, you have to be at least a bit immune.”  
  
 _Less immune than I want to admit._ Rose sighed silently before trying to turn the conversation back around to the point. _Dad can talk my ear off if I let him._ “Jack’s fine. You are right. I can handle him. The Doctor can too, so we are all good. But speaking of immune there is something happening here in Cardiff and I seem to be the only one completely immune to it. I am hoping it hasn’t spread your way, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it has.” She explained the situation about the crazy cat-clocks, the harvesting of emotions, and the fact that they wanted to wait for approval before they tried to contact the entity behind it.  
  
“Now that you mention it, there have been some reports of increased employee anger management issues in the main and secondary buildings.”  
  
“I was afraid of that. To be able to find the devices, you are going to need someone with a high xenon concentration and tight shields. They will have to have the ability to lock down emotion.”  
  
“I will have to look through the personnel records and see if anyone meets the criteria.”  
  
“If you find someone, then all they need to do is walk the areas where you are finding the highest concentration of anger, though they also can feed off of all emotion so don’t rule out any areas where the morale has suddenly increased either. They should be able to easily see the harvester. It looks like those old 1950’s cat clocks with the eyes that move back and forth and the tail swings to count the seconds. If they spot it and there are high emotions running, they will be able to counter the effects in the personnel by skin to skin contact – hand, wrist, etc. It doesn’t have to be intimate, so maybe even a handshake will work. But it does have to be skin to skin. If there are gloves or any other type of material between it doesn’t seem to work.”  
  
“Once we break the connection, what do you suggest we do?”  
  
“You are going to need to research the archives and find the G4 rated objects. They have the highest emotional output. If you can also find a containment device to set around it, even better. That should feed the harvester without compromising the staff. We used Cartan Slave Cuffs and Thracian Bubbles here.”  
  
“Will do. What about if we can’t find anyone?”  
  
“Then let me know. I will take a zeppelin back to London and do the walk myself.”  
  
“All right. I don’t want to disturb the situation in Cardiff if I can help it, but I may need to do that. Naturally high xenon concentrations are hard to find, since only you and Mickey were world jumping consistently and now that he stayed back you are the only one, since the devices are now inoperative. But there are several staff with high Psi ratings that may be able to do it. I will let you know.”  
  
“Do you want us to try to contact the Alpha?”  
  
“Not just yet. Let’s give it a week to assess where we stand and then you can initiate contact.”  
  
“Ok. Dad. Give my love to mom and Tony.”  
  
“Will do. Though you should give him a call soon. He was so disappointed when I had to tell him that neither his big sister nor the Doctor was going to be able to read him his good night story for a few days. He pouted and hid on the zeppelin again.”  
  
“I will call him tomorrow and promise to read him a story on a video call if he is good.”  
  
“Thanks love. Be safe and know your mother and I love you.”  
  
“Night Dad.”  
  
Rose looked up to see the Doctor grinning at her from the doorway as she shut her phone. “Your brother being a handful again?”  
  
“Of course.” Rose grinned at him. “We spoiled him with nightly stories and now he has to go without for a few days.” She got up off the bed and walked over to him to wrap her arms around him. It had rapidly become her favorite method of contact with him – looser than a hug, but still making body contact. It reassured her that he was actually here and that he wouldn’t be leaving her again.  
  
The Doctor wrapped his arms around Rose. _I love it when she does this. She is here. She is mine._ Looking down at her with a smile, “So that’s why the video call. We can alternate if you want. I like your little brother. He has a lot of you in him.”  
  
“I was hoping you would say that.” Rose grinned back at him. “The reading him a story part not the part that you see a lot of me in my brother.”  
  
“But I do.” The Doctor got a mischievous look in his eye. “Weeelll… some at least. There are some things about you that I won’t ever see in any other member of your family.”  
  
“Like what?”  
  
“This for one…” the Doctor slid a hand in her hair and captured her lips with his. Slowly he teased her lips with his before tracing her lower lip with his tongue. He grinned as he heard a soft moan escape her lips before she deepened the kiss and brought one hand up to tangle in his hair. He pulled her body in tight, making sure there was no distance between them. He let his love for her come across in the movement of his body, his hands as they roamed across her, his lips, and his mind – letting the emotion flow across his mind now that he knew she could pick it up empathically.  
  
With a sound suspiciously like a growl, full of need and desire, Rose slid her hands under the Doctor’s shirt to caress the naked skin she found as her mouth moved its way down his neck to nibble at the point where neck met shoulder. With a groan, the Doctor slipped his own hands under her shirt to caress her back. He was about to lift the shirt over her head when a loud crash from the kitchen followed by the sound of something shattering, startled them both back into reality. With a deep and shaky breath, the Doctor reluctantly slipped his hands out from under her shirt and smoothed it back into place. She did the same and stepped back, not quite meeting his eyes. “Sorry” she mumbled and turned away.  
  
The Doctor couldn’t let her go and grabbed her hand as she tried to move away, turning her back to face him. “No. I am the one who is sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I forgot where we are.” The Doctor made her look at him. “I take that back. I am not sorry for kissing you, since I needed that after being hit with the emotion harvester this afternoon, but I am sorry for pushing you.”  
  
“You didn’t really push though, that’s the thing. You have been so damn good about not pushing.” Rose sighed. “It is just you know how I mentioned earlier that the xenon particles have heightened my emotional response to certain stimuli…” She paused as he nodded. “Ya, well… kissing or anything remotely sensual gets amplified. I have been trying to control it, but it is getting harder the longer I am around you because I don’t really want to control it anymore.”  
  
“I understand… and now that we are staying with Jack-the-walking-flirt sensuality is constant.” The Doctor wrapped her in a comforting hug this time before saying, “Speaking of the Captain…”  
  
“That sounded like a crash.” Rose followed along with the subject change, “We should see if dinner survived.”  
  
“Exactly.” The started toward the kitchen but the Doctor felt that in the interest of fairness he had one more thing that he needed to tell her. “Umm… Rose. Just one thing you should know… Jack was also hit hard by the emotional harvester. He won’t say anything, of course, but I thought you should know.”  
  
Rose paused as she tried to decipher the Doctor’s tone. _What exactly is he trying to tell me? He told me he needed the kiss after being hit by the harvester. Is he suggesting I kiss Jack?_ She opened her lips to ask him, but the Doctor had already turned the corner into the living room. Rose quickened her pace to catch up.  
  


********************

Jack was busy bustling around the kitchen, adding chopped vegetables to the chicken he had prepared, and sautéing both in white wine. He was reaching for the pasta to add to the pot of water boiling merrily away on the stove when the first wave of emotion hit him. It was gentle at first – humor, companionship, friendship and it made him smile as he tossed the pasta in the pot and set the timer. _Hmmm… that feels nice. Since the xenon particles are making Rose more psychically empathic, I wonder if this is from her. I admit I could get used to it, if it is. It’s nice._ He was reaching for a bottle of wine when the second wave hit. The need, desire, and passion rocked his body hard, causing one hand to accidently knock the colander into the sink and the bottle of wine to slip from the other – shattering into several pieces as it hit the floor. He had crossed the kitchen and was halfway across the kitchen before he realized what had happened. Struggling to maintain his composure, he gripped the edge of the sink hard, ignoring the wine pooling at his feet and the shards of glass on the floor. _Rose… Gods… to be on the receiving end of that maelstrom. I would happily sink forever… But she is the Doctor’s not mine, despite what he said earlier. How could he be willing to share THAT? I need to lock this down. Be content with what you can Jack… she is back in your life and she isn’t going to go away. She is your best friend… Why can’t you be content with that?_

“Jack??” Rose’s voice was quiet as she came into the kitchen to see her best friend with a death grip on the counter, ignoring the mess at his feet, and a look of pain on his face. “Jack, are you all right?”

“Give me a moment.” Jack was able to grind out, his voice tight.

Silently, the Doctor walked into the kitchen, turned off the beeping timer and the burners. With a sympathetic look at Rose, he nodded his head toward Jack.

Rose caught his meaning and approached Jack slowly, slowly loosening one of his hands and wrapping it in hers. When he took a deep breath and relaxed the other, she pulled him away from the counter and the mess around it before wrapping her arms around his waist in a hug. She smiled to herself as he instantly did the same to her, holding her tightly for a few moments. “Better?”

Jack let himself swim in the love and friendship that Rose let flow through her mind, catching hints of something else he refused to acknowledge. _She doesn’t really want me that way… it must be residual from what she was sharing with the Doctor._ For some reason, his self-doubt was trying to override the memory of his conversation with the Doctor earlier that day. _But… Oh how I wish she did._ Forcing his brain to focus on the girl (his FRIEND!) in his arms, he took a deep breath and responded to her question. “Yes. Much. I am sorry, I don’t know what happened.”

“I think what happened was me.” Rose said apologetically. “I was telling the Doctor and I need to tell you that one of the side effects I mentioned earlier today was amplified emotional response to some things.” She blushed, “I had no idea it was possible to project it or that I was doing so.”

“What kind of amplified emotional response? Does it work for everything or only some emotions?” Jack asked, his natural curiosity overcoming his emotions of a moment before.

Rose laughed, “Kind of like multiplying the intensity factor by ten. Thankfully it doesn’t happen with everything or I would be an emotional wreck and/or confined to the loony bin. I recently determined that it seems to happen with sensual or sexual stimuli. Apparently, I have a harder time locking those kinds of emotions down.” She winked at him.

Jack realized that he still had his arms wrapped around her, but he didn’t want to let her go quite yet. Still… he knew what she was expecting and he didn’t want to disappoint. Summoning his most flirty smile he said, “So does that mean that I get to try and get you all hot and bothered when I flirt with you, now?”

“Like you didn’t try, before?” Rose picked up on the change in Jack’s attitude and was willing to play along; since it kept her from analyzing too deeply the emotions she was getting from him.

“Ahhh... but Rosie, you have never seen me in full force.” He shifted them, so his hands were on her hips but he discreetly stepped back, so their bodies weren’t actually touching. _Safer this way._

“Close enough!” She laughed. “Though watch it, flyboy, if I start projecting my flirt, you could find yourself in serious competition.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“Maybe…”

“Cuz you know you can’t win against me. I am Captain Jack Harkness. Men, women, and 37 different alien species have tried. All have succumbed.”

“Ri-iight… Wotch me,” her accent got thicker (secretly to the delight of both men) as she got more flirty. With her uniquely impish grin she stretched up on her tip-toes and lightly placed her lips on his, letting them tickle across his as her emotions danced and dared him to respond.

“Dinner is ready,” the Doctor interrupted with thinly veiled humor. He stepped forward carrying the steaming bowl of pasta and gesturing to the table that he had set while they were wrapped up in their discussion.

The Doctor’s voice snapped Jack out of the mental battle he was in to NOT respond to Rose’s kiss by ripping her clothes off and making love to her on the dining room table. Gratefully, he stepped back with a grin. “Impasse darling. Next time you will have to try harder.”

“Of Course. I like a good challenge.” She winked.

“So do I.”

“Oh Rassilion… this is going to be interesting. And by interesting, I mean Hell... Weeeelll, maybe not hell, but at least the Underground at rush hour.” The Doctor grinned to let them know he was teasing them, while they laughed.

The intensity of the last hour broken, they sat down to eat the wonderful meal Jack had prepared. In the other room, the crystal grew two more spires.


	10. Chapter 10

After dinner, Rose walked into the living room while Jack and the Doctor finished up the dishes. The large glowing crystal caught her attention and she walked over to it. Reaching out to touch the newest spire, she could feel warmth and a light pulsing. _What do you need, my girl? You keep growing but we never see what it is that is causing the growth. We just look up and you have gotten bigger. How can we help you become what you are meant to? I wish you could just tell me what you need. All of us want you back._ As if in answer to her silent questions, Rose was suddenly overwhelmed with flashes of memories. Some she didn't remember – Jack riding on the TARDIS to the end of the universe, the expression on the Doctor's face as Jack called his regeneration both cheeky and slightly prejudiced as he willingly walked into a chamber flooded with radiation to save the last of the human population, the Doctor saving the world from the Master and then his agony as he chose to die in his arms rather than regenerate. Some she did – nights with the three of them in the TARDIS kitchen laughing over their most recent adventure, a series of images of the Doctor grabbing her hand, Jack catching her as she was pulled into his ship, lying on the apple grass with the Doctor outside the 14th New New York, the kiss she pressed on the Doctor's helmet just before he went down into the core of an impossible planet, and Jack kissing both of them before leaving to protect them from the Daleks on the Game Station. Rose understood in that moment what the TARDIS needed as she showed Rose one last image – Rose and the Doctor dancing as they welcomed Jack onto the TARDIS and ultimately into their hearts. "So that's what you need, is it my girl…"  
  
"What's that?" The Doctor came up behind Rose and slipped his arms around her as she continued to lightly stroke the crystalline formation.  
  
Rose snuggled into the Doctor's arms with a sigh and a smile, "I finally realized what it is the TARDIS needs to keep growing. The time energy she absorbed from us was the start but she has been feeding off of something else recently which is why she keeps growing."  
  
"Wot! She told you what she needs? How? When? What?" shock shook the Doctor's voice. "JACK! Get in here!"  
  
Rose smiled as Jack rushed into the room a damp dish rag in his hand and a worried expression on his face. "She needs us."  
  
"I can't believe that I am asking this, again… but what do you mean she needs us and why isn't she telling me this?"  
  
"I am guessing it's the xenon particles. You both are slightly psychic, correct?" at their nod she continued," but in Jack's case it's advanced human evolution and in your case Doctor it is residue from the human-time lord metacrisis. Mine comes directly from the dimension jumping, and as you know Doctor the heart of the TARDIS has a high concentration of them, so I am guessing it is easier for her to tap into that."  
  
"Rose, you are brilliant," the Doctor grinned as he kissed her forehead and saw a play of colors flash though the crystal. "Which means that our girl is feeding off of our emotions."  
  
"Like those creepy cat things?" Jack asked after tossing his rag back into the kitchen and walking over to them.  
  
"Exactly, but I would rather the TARDIS feed on me any day rather than those things," Rose shuddered. "Besides where they are feeding on and seem to prefer negative emotions, the TARDIS is only feeding on the positive.  
  
"The ol' girl would. Such a smart thing." The Doctor caressed one of the crystals while Rose giggled at the impression she got.  
  
"She is pleased that you are caressing her again. Like you used to stroke the console." Rose said with a grin.  
  
"She is actually talking to you?" Jack asked.  
  
"Not exactly." Rose responded. "It's more like impressions and emotions. When the doctor started caressing her, it was like the purring of a cat in my head."  
  
Jack walked over to where she and the Doctor were standing, each with a hand on a spire. He put one arm around Rose's waist as he reached out his hand hesitantly to touch another spire. It was warm under his fingers. He heard Rose take a sharp intake of breath. Curious he looked down at her and saw her turning a light shade of red. "What? What did the TARDIS show you?"  
  
"Umm… I think they might have been some of your fantasies," Rose bit her lips as she continued, still blushing as a faint pink bloomed on Jack's cheeks.  
  
"What do you mean, you think they might have been some of my fantasies?" Jack said while the Doctor silently shook with laughter.  
  
"Well, they could have been the Doctor's but since they flashed when you touched her, I am assuming that they were yours. I wasn't exactly naïve at nineteen when I hopped on board the TARDIS, and I admit that I had my own fair share of fantasies, but some of the things that just flashed through I didn't really realize were anatomically possible, and I never would have thought to try that on myself or do that to the Doctor. Though now that I have seen it, it does have me curious."  
  
"Oh." Jack did manage to turn a bright red, "Ummm…."  
  
At Rose's words and the look on Jack's face, the Doctor had gone from silent chuckles to full on guffaws and he was having a hard time keeping upright, he was laughing so hard. "Jack… blushing… never thought I would see… Jack red!"  
  
"Don't worry, Jack," Rose said taking pity on her friend. "I don't get the impression that the TARDIS was offended." Rose's breath hitched as another image flashed. She grinned. "In fact if I had to say it was more along the lines of a maiden aunt with matchmaking tendencies."  
  
"I am not sure that makes me feel better."  
  
Rose stretched up and kissed his cheek. "You were in some of mine if it makes you feel any better. Fantasies I mean."  
  
"Really?" Rose's words caused the reaction she anticipated and her blushing and stammering friend turned back into his usual suave self. He held a little bit tighter to her and said with his trademark grin. "You will have to tell me about them, sometime."  
  
"Sometime I may, though right now there is something that I think our girl wants us to do first, because she has repeated the same image three times and there is something that feels like impatience behind it."  
  
The Doctor had finally finished laughing and was wiping tears from the corner of his eyes, as he asked, "What is it?"  
  
"Dancing."  
  
"Dancing?" Jack repeated with a bit of puzzled tone in his voice.  
  
"Yep. Dancing." Rose confirmed. "She keeps showing me the time you first joined us on the TARDIS. Do you remember?"  
  
"Yes. I was waiting for the bomb on my ship to explode and I heard music. I walked down the hall and saw you both dancing to Glen Miller. The Doctor told me to shut the door behind me and then threatened me not to make him regret his decision."  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"I also seem to recall the Doctor saying something along the lines that I wasn't sure who I wanted to dance with."  
  
"Yes I did." The Doctor grinned. "I still don't think you know who you want to dance with."  
  
 _Actually, I do – it's both of you._ Though out loud he said, "Well I guess than for the moment I will have to dance with each of you until I decide."  
  
Rose laughed. "So you said there was a stereo in here. Why don't you turn it on, flyboy."  
  
"Yes ma'am."  
  
"It's too bad that we don't have any music from the old Earth. That's the one thing that I miss. Not that this world's music is bad. The genres are the same, but the songs are different."  
  
"Well, than I am glad I can help with that," Jack grinned as he held up a flash drive. "Ianto had just finished downloading most of the music of the 20th and the early 21st century for me onto this six terabyte drive when the 456 arrived. He slipped it into my jacket pocket after the first contact and never told me. I found it after…" Jack's face shut down for a moment before he swallowed back the pain and continued." When I got here I uploaded it into my stereo, so I should have most of what you want except for possibly some of the more obscure indie artists."  
  
"Oh Jack… I am sorry. I can't imagine what seeing him here has been like for you." Rose walked over to him and put her arms around his waist.  
  
"It was a shock. I won't lie." Jack said against her hair. "But I was more relieved that there is world where he is still alive and happy. I… I loved him in my way but I always knew that I had to hold something of myself back. I think he guessed, but he loved me anyway."  
  
The Doctor came up and wrapped his arms around Rose's so Jack was engulfed in a hug from both of them. "He wouldn't want you to grieve for him. I didn't know him for very long but I could see it. You can honor his memory by enjoying his last gift and remembering the good times you shared."  
  
Jack sank into their warmth for a moment, before taking a breath and saying, "You're right, Doctor. He wouldn't and he would be the first to tell me I was being ridiculous. It took me a long time to upload the drive, but it was closure when I did." Jack pulled out of their embrace with a smile and said, "So what do we want first?"  
  
Rose accepted the change of subject with grace and suggested, "Well, since the TARDIS keeps showing me that scene, a little big band sounds good but let's say with a late 20th century/ early 21st century twist. How does Brian Setzer Orchestra sound?"  
  
"Like I should Jump, Jive, and Wail!" Jack said with a grin.  
  
The sounds of a big band and full orchestra filled the room, and with a bow at Rose, Jack swung her up into a modified swing, while the Doctor grinned and danced around them. They took turns switching partners, laughing and just enjoying themselves.  
  
After about an hour, the music changed to Moan by Trentmoller and Rose enjoyed the moment to cool down from the high energy. However, Jack looked at the Doctor with a frown. "I didn't program in this song."  
  
"Does your stereo have a crystal core, like most of the electrical equipment on this Earth?"  
  
"Probably, I never really looked. Crystals?"  
  
"Yup. Quartz is a brilliant conductor of energy and since it's common, this world has adapted it to work in most electrics."  
  
"Like a quartz watch."  
  
"On a much bigger scale, yeah."  
  
"Makes sense, so why did the music change without my programming it?" Jack asked.  
  
"The TARDIS." The Doctor replied. "Since she is still in crystalline form she must have figured out how to tap into the stereo's crystals to access the playlist."  
  
As if in answer to the Doctor's comment, Ravel's Bolero started playing. "Yup. That exactly it." The Doctor glared at the crystal. "And she is still playing matchmaker."  
  
"Now what do you mean?" Jack said still confused, while Rose smiled.  
  
"Bolero." She responded. "It was playing on the space station above the black hole. It's was about the time that the Doctor and I realized we could be stranded and may have to get domestic."  
  
"Ahh…" Jack said with a knowing grin. "So now that you are actually domestic, she is having a bit of fun."  
  
"You could say that." The Doctor said with another dirty look at the crystal. _It's not the domestic thing that she is trying to play up. It's the fact that I find this particular piece of music stimulating in a rather sexual way. I just haven't told anyone that._  
  
"Well let's not disappoint," Jack said and swept the Doctor into a formal ballroom style dance around the room, while Rose smiled and watched, and the Doctor tried to figure out if Jack's comment was in response to the song playing or the Doctor's thought after.  
  
 _They are quite elegant together. Watching them together… I could really get used to this._ As if on cue the song ended and Chris Isaac's Wicked Game came on. It was Rose's turn to glare at the TARDIS, while Jack got a huge grin. "I love this song. I always forget about it. Did you ever see the video? HAWT!" He turned to Rose and pulled her in close to dance to the slow sensual beat.  
  
"I wish I could forget about it…" Rose grumbled.  
  
Jack looked at her curiously, "You don't like it? Then why would the TARDIS play it."  
  
"I love the song actually, it's one that turns me on every time I hear it."  
  
The Doctor's comment that the TARDIS was trying to matchmaker and Rose's comment about catching some of his fantasies replayed back through his head. _Not that I am complaining, old girl, because it got Rose in my arms in a way that I have wanted for an unbearably long time, but you may want to try a little more subtlety next time. Wait. If this song turns Rose on then Bolero and the Doctor… Oh girl, you are seriously devious._ He smiled at the TARDIS as he wound one of Rose's arms around his neck and leaned in to sing softly in her ear, "I never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you. I never dreamed that I'd lose somebody like you."  
  
Rose was barely maintaining control on her body and Jack's soft tenor in her ear as he sang those words to her caused a full body shudder. Her fingers tightened on his neck and she fought to force back down the need to press her lips to his and slide her hands under his clothes to caress his naked skin. Suddenly another body pressing against her back caused her to lose it and she whimpered as the Doctor pressed his lips against the skin of her neck. _Not both of them… I can't handle it._  
  
The Doctor saw the intensity of Rose's reaction to the way Jack sang softly in her ear and felt an overriding need to have them both in his arms. Without even really aware he was doing so, he crossed the room and joined them, Jack moving the hand that had been on Rose's hip to the Doctor's without even missing a beat. Pressed up against Rose's body as they rocked to the beat, he tilted his head to lay a gentle kiss on her neck.  
  
The kiss was an ignition that Rose was unable to control. Turning her head she locked her lips with the Doctor's letting her need and love come out as she teased them against his. She held the kiss for as long as she could until the need for air became critical. Then it was Jack's teeth in her neck that caused the gasp and quick inhalation. She was still wrapped in their arms, held tightly and she couldn't tell anymore which hands belonged to each of them. She tilted her head back and away from both of them as she tried to catch her breath.  
  
"Kiss him," the Doctor whispered in her ear. "He needs it and he won't ask."  
  
Rose glanced quickly at the Doctor and then over at Jack, who was trying to pull back from them. Without a word, she turned his head back around to his and pressed her lips against his.  
  
At the first touch of her lips, Jack tried to control himself, but the longer she left them his control eroded. With a growl he didn't hear coming from his throat, he kissed back, tongue teasing against her lips and demanding entrance. Without realizing it he let all of himself into the kiss – his desire, his fear at being alone, his reaction to her unintentional emotional burst earlier, his love for both of them, and his need for her to understand.  
  
Rose was rocked by the intensity of Jack's kiss and the emotions that she could feel pouring off of him. She pulled him closer and let herself be consumed, while the Doctor continued to lay small kisses along her neck and jaw line.  
  
It was Jack who finally broke the kiss, closing his eyes and pressing his forehead against hers for a moment before laughing quietly. "Damn…"  
  
"Yeah, you could say that," the Doctor said with a smile.  
  
"Ditto," Rose grinned and let herself relax against them both as the song came to an end, just enjoying the feel of being in both their arms.  
  
However the next song to come on shattered that feeling of relaxation as Jack violently pulled away from the both and stood staring at the crystal as the drumbeat of Godsmack's Voodoo came across the speakers. "No."  
  
Rose and the Doctor looked at each other in confusion before turning to Jack who was still staring at the crystal with a look they hadn't seen before.  
  
"I said No. Change it NOW!" Jack glared at the crystal. "I will not let you manipulate us anymore. When the time is right, you can play that piece but not now."  
  
Almost as if the TARDIS was trying to apologize, the music changed to something softer and lighter. Rose and the Doctor approached him carefully.  
  
"Are you ok?" Rose asked tentatively.  
  
"Yes. I just didn't want her manipulating us anymore. If something is meant to happen, it will in its own time, not because we can't control our hormones when certain songs play."  
  
"I take it that song turns you on?"  
  
"That song turns me into a primal fucking machine." Jack said bluntly before softening his tone, "Sorry. I didn't mean for that to come out that way."  
  
Rose tried to hide a shudder at his tone and words, but was only moderately successful. The Doctor had better luck, though his cheeky grin was huge. _Oho! Jack my boy. You too, huh. She is definitely sneaky._  
  
The music turned almost contrite again as the crystal pulsed, as if in apology.  
  
"Ok girl, I forgive you," Jack said with a smile.  
  
With a humming noise all three heard, they watched fascinated as she grew several new spires.  
  
Rose smiled as she walked back over to the crystal. "I thought so. You need our emotions."  
  
As if in answer, the crystal pulsed and gave Rose another image. This time when Rose looked down there were three small crystals, wrapped in silver, lying on a flat part of one of the spires. Rose called out, "Jack – can you please grab three chains out of my jewelry box?"  
  
"Huh? Why?"  
  
"Please just get them." Rose answered with excitement in her voice.  
  
The Doctor walked over to Rose and his breath caught as he saw what was in Rose's hands.  
  
"She just…"  
  
"Just what?" Jack said annoyance in his voice at not having his questions answered.  
  
"Gave us pieces of her heart. As we have given her pieces of ours," The Doctor said with reverence, as he took one of the chains from Jack and strung a pendant on it. With a smile he clasped it around Rose's neck before repeating the motion with Jack and himself.  
  
"Oh…" Jack felt the wind rush out of him as he felt the crystal settle around his neck. Its energy giving him a burst of happiness, he could see echoed on the faces of his companions.  
  
"We are now bound to her as she is to us," Rose whispered.  
  



	11. Chapter 11

Rose lay in her bed staring at the ceiling. She fingered the crystal around her neck. The TARDIS’s gift had signaled an end to the dancing for the evening as Rose had initially felt exhausted after the Doctor had put the piece of the TARDIS around her neck, and let the others know she needed sleep. But after tossing and turning for a half-hour, she was wide awake again, and the crystal kept feeding her images of the evening – making out with the Doctor, kissing Jack, dancing with both of them. Wicked Game was stuck on repeat in her brain and it was getting her hot and bothered again. _Damn it. What am I going to do? I can’t exactly walk out there and say ‘hey boys, why don’t we all get naked in Jack’s bed and see if we really can have a threesome on one side of it without disturbing the other’._ A voice whispered “why can’t you?” Sighing, Rose ignored the voice and continued her inner dialogue. _I can’t sneak out to the Doctor because that wouldn’t be fair to Jack and if I snuck into Jack’s room for a little casual release between friends, the Doctor would probably never forgive me. This sucks._  
  
Rose tried to shut her eyes again and ignore the feelings for a few more minutes before sighing again and re-opening them. The tank top and panties she was sleeping in felt too restrictive, so grumbling she slipped them off. Only this presented a new challenge as the softness of the brushed cotton sheets rubbing against her now bare nipples caused them to tighten. Her mind pictured the sheets as the Doctor’s soft lips teasingly brushing across her breasts. It was immediately followed by an image of Jack kissing his way down her abdomen before flicking his tongue out to tease at her clit. An involuntary moan quietly slipped from her lips.  
  
“Dear gods, I am going mental.” Rose said softly to her still empty room.  
  
Resigning herself to the inevitable, she reached into her nightstand and pulled out her sonic vibrator. _I won’t be able to sleep until I work off some of this tension. Please let the guys be asleep, I couldn’t live it down if they heard me and teased me about it in the morning._ With practiced hand she worked the vibrator in the way that she knew would bring her quickly to an orgasm, while she gave in and let her imagination run wild with images of both the Doctor and Jack.  
  


*********************

The Doctor was restless. He had spent the last hour gazing adoringly at the crystal in the center of the room while lying on the couch. The only problem was now that he knew how to communicate with her and he wore a piece of her around his neck, she was flooding him with images. Most of them were good; all of them in fact, but it was the ones that she kept flashing repeatedly that had the Doctor restless. He knew that they had not in fact occurred yet, but the TARDIS saw through time and space and she was relentlessly showing him images of him, Jack, and Rose making love as they flew through the stars. _My dear girl, are you trying to drive me insane? I know that I want them. Right now it’s taking all of my control not to walk into Rose’s room, kiss her senseless, grab her hand and drag her into Jack’s room. She isn’t ready for that._

The faintest buzzing sound whispered through the flat, causing the Doctor to groan. He knew that sound and he knew exactly what Rose was doing with it. Now the images that flashed through his head were of watching Jack take control of it and using it on her, while her body bucked and squirmed underneath it.

The Doctor tried to push back the image and stubbornly flipped so his back was to the crystal and deliberately thought of quantum mathematics. But the sheet he was lying on slipped and the butter soft leather of Jack’s couch made contact with the Doctor’s bare back and it made him imagine Jack caressing it with long slow strokes while Jack laid gentle bites along his shoulders. The buzz intruded again and with a sigh, the Doctor slid a hand down to his erect cock. Closing his eyes, he started to work it in a way that had become all too familiar the last time he travelled with those two. With another groan escaping his lips he surrendered himself to the sensations and his mind to the fantasies that he had kept hidden for years.

**********************

Jack was pacing in his room, definitely awake and definitely horny. _Of course, if I said something like that out loud the Doctor or Rose would probably come back with some quip like “when aren’t you horny?’ The thing they don’t realize is I really haven’t been this level of distracted since the last time we travelled together. Not that I didn’t have a lot of fun times in between and Ianto was definitely a lovely shag, but even then it wasn’t this bad. This is beyond horny. It’s like a desperate thirst that can’t be quenched. They are the only ones who have ever made me feel this way… and there is nothing I can do about it._

With a sigh he changed into comfortable workout pants, but stayed shirtless. Knowing he needed to work off some of his frustration, but that high intensity calisthenics were out of the question, he dropped to the ground and started alternating between push-ups and sit-ups, hoping to burn out some of his frustration in a productive way. _I know that Rose secretly enjoys it when I run around shirtless._ An image of the Doctor’s lean runner’s build wearing only a towel as he emerged from the shower that morning flashed through Jack’s head, causing a tightening in his groin. With a growl he stood up and switched to lunges and squats, holding a 25lb weight against his chest. This time, his mind betrayed him as he got a visceral touch memory of holding Rose’s soft curvy body against his as he caught her at the end of the tractor beam. The tightening worsened. Giving up on his workout, Jack reached for a towel on the dresser by his door.

As his hand grabbed the towel, he thought he heard a faint buzzing coming from down the hall. Recognizing the noise as a vibrator, he reached for the doorknob automatically, before realizing that as much as he wanted to, he couldn’t go down the hall to her and offer to give her something a bit less plastic. Still he pressed his head to the door and listened, imagining Rose working the vibrator on herself. As the images flashed across his mind of her sprawled out in front of him, he heard a soft rhythmic groaning. _Is that the Doctor? Dear gods… Is that the Doctor pleasuring himself? Why doesn’t he go to her? The nagging voice in his mind answered. For the same reason you won’t go to either of them and they won’t come to you. He is afraid of her reaction if he does, and she doesn’t want to cause tension._

“This situation is a mess.” Jack said quietly.

He felt the crystal at his neck grow warm, while his mind was flooded with images of him, the Doctor, and Rose. Even though he knew it was the TARDIS trying to manipulating him into acting, he couldn’t deny how hard it made him when he saw an image of himself pressing into the Doctor’s tight ass, while he pounded into Rose, her arms going around the Doctor to Jack and her nails scoring down his shoulders. Pressing his head and one hand against the closed door, Jack slid the other down his chest to free himself. He refused to let the TARDIS talk him into going out there, but he was helpless to control his own need when he knew that the others were satisfying theirs. Stroking firmly, he let the sounds wash over him and surrendered his mind to his desires, even though he knew the release would be hollow and not what he desperately wanted.

************************

The morning dawned cold, grey and bleak. _Fits my mood._ Rose thought as she forced her eyes open. _Too many dreams last night involving them. The vibrator only took the edge off. Now I need to go out there and pretend that I only want to flirt. She sighed. We have another day to kill before Dad is supposed to let me know if he found someone to desensitize Torchwood London. At this point, I think I am hoping that he doesn’t. I need a break from the tension, but part of me aches at the idea of leaving them, even for only a day or so._ She sighed again. _Ok Rose, time to stop feeling sorry for yourself. Get up and get a move on. You can control your libido, and if you can’t … well… UGH! At least while those damn cat clocks are still in the house they will have to touch you often to renew their immunity._

Rose forced herself out of bed and peaked through the door that lead into the bathroom. Thankful that it was empty, she pulled out some clothes and went to go take a shower.

The sound of the shower going down the hall was Jack’s cue to get up and make coffee for the three of them. His body felt tired and achy and he felt the lack of sleep from the night before. _Coffee will help. Coffee then shower and getting ready for another day at work. At least I will have Rose and the Doctor with me for a few more days. Wishing for anything more is hopeless._

Quickly changing back into workout pants and a tee shirt, Jack exited his bedroom. The aroma of coffee hit his nose immediately and he couldn’t help a smile of pleasure as he looked up to see the Doctor sitting at the kitchen table in a pair of pajama bottoms and tee shirt, sipping a cup of coffee as he flipped through the newspaper. His hair was wild and his feet were bare. These two little things were what fascinated Jack the most. _He looks domestic. Even more – he looks comfortable being domestic._

The Doctor looked up as he heard a bedroom door open. Smiling he saluted Jack with his cup. “Good Morning, Jack.”

“Morning Doctor. Please tell me there is more coffee and that you didn’t burn it this time.”

“Oi! I will have you know Jackie taught me how to make coffee properly. Even Rose is impressed by my ability.”

Jack laughed, “Considering it was your attempts that nearly sent her to the hospital on Vega IV, I am surprised she would give your brew a second chance.”

“Pfft… water under the bridge and all that,” the Doctor got up and prepared a second cup of coffee, putting in in precisely the amount of sugar and creamer he knew Jack liked. He stirred it twice before setting the spoon in the sink and approaching Jack with the mug. A look of challenge crossed his face. “Do you trust me?”

Jack caught his breath as he realized the Doctor was trying to flirt (FLIRT!) with him. _Interesting development. Maybe it’s not hopeless after all._ Giving his trademark grin, he took the mug, making sure that his fingers “accidently” caressed across the Doctor’s. Once he had the mug he continued to make eye contact as he slowly brought the mug to his lips, hiding a smile as the Doctor broke first and looked away. Truly taking a sip, he mmm’d in pleasure as the flavor hit. “Ok Doctor. Maybe there are two things you can make in a kitchen. This coffee is divine.”

“Thank you,” the Doctor preened. “It is remarkably difficult to do something so simple.

“Is that coffee, I smell?” Rose’s voice echoed into the room from around the corner. She followed immediately behind, dressed comfortably in jeans and a sweater. Her hair still slightly damp from the shower. She was wearing make-up, but Jack could still see the faint circles that indicated she didn’t sleep well the night before.

“Yes it is!” The Doctor turned and prepared her cup. He handed it to her with a smile and she took it before placing a kiss on his cheek.

“Thanks.” She walked over Jack and placed a kiss on his cheek before saying, “good morning.”

Jack smiled and asked, “Did you sleep well? You look tired.”

Rose’s eyes shot over to him as she tried to determine if he had heard her little escapade with the vibrator, but his face remained carefully neutral. She responded. “I slept ok. Restless dreams.”

“Want to talk about them?”

“Oh, you know dreams… they always seem silly in the morning and you forget what happened in them,” Rose answered noncommittally, though a faint blush crept up her cheeks. _Only these dreams, I do remember exactly what happened and what exactly you did to me Captain. You and the Doctor._ “How about both of you? How did you sleep?”

Both Jack and the Doctor saw the faint flush, but both chose to ignore it since acknowledging it may have caused them to do the same. Jack responded first, “Restless dreams. That’s a good way to put it.”

“Same here.”

Now concerned, Rose said, “I hope it’s not those stupid cat-clocks again.”

“No. I am sure. Weeeeell… 98.6% sure that it is the TARDIS, actually,” the Doctor tried to calm her fears. “She doesn’t seem to know how to be subtle. It’s always go go go.”

“Sounds like her Time Lord,” Jack teased.

“Maybe…” The Doctor grinned.

“So what time are we heading into Torchwood? And please tell me you have a couple extra scarves,” Rose asked changing the subject as she looked out the window. “What a weird weather change, yesterday it was a perfectly crisp autumn morning and now it is snowing. That’s odd, even for England.”

“We will go in after the Doctor and I grab showers. Extra scarves are in the hall closet. As for the weather… We work at Torchwood. What else does dramatic weather shift always indicate?”

“Ugh… Alien tech. Or in this case MORE alien tech.” Rose groaned. “Just once I would like to have to deal with just one thing at a time.”

“But Rose, where’s the fun in that?” The Doctor grinned like an eight year old with cake.

She waived them towards the bathrooms, “Go. Take showers. Get dressed. I will pack thermoses. Our job waits.” She sighed and unconsciously reached for the stone around her neck.


	12. Chapter 12

Three days later and the Torchwood team was exhausted. Jack had sent his crew home again for a couple days rest and forced both the Doctor and Rose to wait on typing up the report on the attack until the next day, instead bundling them both into their coats, gloves, and scarves before ushering them out up the lift. The alien tech that had caused the massive weather shift had turned out to be yet another invasion attempt by the Sycorax. The Doctor was trying to decide if he was relieved or dismayed that on this world the Torchwood team didn’t deploy the weapon that destroyed them as Torchwood One had done on the other planet; rather, they found a way to break the blood bond differently and sent the ship off with a warning instead. He was relieved because it meant that the Sycorax weren’t destroyed. He was dismayed because instead of leaving the planet alone, he was informed that the Sycorax now attempted to subjugate the planet every 4 years or so believing in their superiority and the Earth’s weakness for refusing to deploy ultimate weapons.   
  
“So how many times have the Sycorax attacked?” he asked.   
  
“This was their third attempt. It was one of the first things that happened when Mum and I got stranded here. Because I knew what had happened with them on Old Earth, I knew how to break the blood bond and was able to talk Dad out of deploying that weapon.” Rose sighed. “I wanted… no needed… to do something to honor your memory and since I knew how furious you were when Harriet Jones gave the approval for the weapon to be deployed, I managed to alter that result. Only now they are continuing to test us, not believing that we won’t be conquered eventually. So far they haven’t thrown anything at us that we haven’t been able to handle but their last attempt was closer than I wanted.” She smiled at both of them. “I am just as glad that both you and Jack are here. Your idea to flip the tables and manipulate their soldiers into sabotaging their weapons was brilliant. Maybe they will finally get the hint and leave us alone.”   
  
“If not, then we will come up with something else,” Jack said, returning her smile and putting one arm around her waist and throwing his other across the Doctor’s shoulders.   
  
“I still stand by my actions and decision,” the Doctor said, “It was wrong to deploy as they were already leaving the area.” His voice caught a note of hesitation. “But I am also now really aware of the alternate effect of that. I still don’t think the Earth is better off, and humans can be violent beyond reason, but now that I am more human I think I understand the reason why it happened. Two additional invasion attempts by the same race shouldn’t have happened.”   
  
Rose stepped across Jack and laid her head on the Doctor’s shoulder. “It happened. I don’t regret saving them but I am all for finding a way to make it stick that our world is not up for grabs. So start thinking boys, because I figure we have about another 2-3 years before they try again.”   
  
“Yes Ma’am,” Jack snapped a salute at her before giving her one of his grins. “You’re sexy when you get all commanding.”   
  
“Ha! Tell that to my old team. They just thought I was intense and scary. I did much better when I was able to start world jumping on my own.”   
  
“Yeah… about that. What possessed you to go it alone? You could have been killed?!?” The Doctor finally asked the question that had been haunting him for months. “Jack back me up here.”   
  
“Not that I question your ability, Rosie but…”  
  
Rose turned to glare at both of them hands on her hips, her voice raised. “Seriously?!? You are seriously questioning me on this MONTHS after it happened, when both of you have spent centuries trying to save the world by yourself. Aren’t you being just a tad hypocritic-" She caught sight of a cat-clock on the wall outside the shop near where they were standing and sighed. _We really need to address that issue. I will call Dad when we get back to the flat. The anger is intensifying._   
  
Neither the Doctor nor Jack heard her break off her statement and look over their shoulders, so they missed her sigh. Instead their tirade about her safety increased.   
  
“Do you know how devastated I would be if something had happened to you?” The Doctor replied heatedly. “You were supposed to stay safe and be happy here on this world. It was the only thing that kept me going.”   
  
“It killed me when I read your name on the Canary Wharf list. I spent months trying to find a way to fix my time vortex manipulator so I could jump back and find a way to rescue you.”   
  
The Doctor turned angrily to Jack, “You know you couldn’t do that! You would have crossed timelines and could have destroyed the universe. It was one of the reasons I deactivated your damn manipulator in the first place.”   
  
“I didn’t care. I would have been careful. I was in Cardiff during the invasion, so I wouldn’t have accidently run into myself. It would have been worth it to save her,” Jack glared back. “You just left her trapped somewhere and didn’t bother-“ Jack’s rant was cut off by an armful of Rose Tyler pressing her lips to his.   
  
Rose saw the argument turn and knew both were a hairsbreadth away from starting a physical fight. Hearing Jack starting to say something she knew he would regret she made a split second decision and flung herself into his arms, kissing him deeply.   
  
“Hey!!” the Doctor said incensed.   
  
Jack faintly heard the comment, but he was too caught up in the kiss to care. He let his emotion take over as he teased her lips with his and slid his tongue into her eager mouth. The small noises she made only inflamed his desire. He stayed there for a timeless moment before his brain kicked back in and he realized what she was doing. _There must be one of those damn devices around and she can’t touch skin to skin any other way. Not that I am complaining but…_ He broke the kiss with a whispered, “Thank you.”   
  
Rose pulled back and gave him a wink, “Right.” She turned to the Doctor who was visibly turning red and appeared to be on the verge of decking Jack. “Ok, Doctor – Your turn.”   
  
“Rose, what do you mea-“ This time it was the Doctor who got an armful of Rose.   
  
The moment her lips touched his, his anger at both of them disappeared, and he knew exactly what had happened. Still, he wasn’t about to let the opportunity to kiss Rose as deeply as he wanted go to waste. He leisurely explored her lips and teased her tongue with his own, relishing the way she melted in his arms. Finally he broke it off with his lopsided grin. “I guess I should be grateful you didn’t slap Jack or me the way you did Owen.”   
  
She held up her gloved hand and wiggled her fingers, “It wouldn’t have worked. Not that I wasn’t tempted. You know I can take care of myself.”   
  
“In the interest of not starting this fight over, maybe we should deactivate the device that is causing it.” Jack interrupted.   
  
“Right.” Rose responded. “It’s over there on the wall next to the Antiques shop.”   
  
The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and proceeded to find and deactivate the cat-clock. “There. Done. Though I had to fully deactivate it. It wouldn’t be safe to leave it unshielded and there isn’t a practical way to shield since this normally a busy street.”   
  
“It also means that whatever it is that is controlling these, now knows we are on to them.” Jack sighed.   
  
Rose grabbed his hand and squeezed. “It had to happen sooner or later, we just got caught up with the Sycorax. I will call dad when we get back to the flat and see where he wants us to go from here.”   
  
The Doctor grinned, “So much for our day off.”   
  
Rose took his hand and returned the grin. “You don’t have to look so happy about it. Some of us were actually looking forward to a day off.”   
  
“But Rose, that’s no fun!”   
  
All three laughed and turned to continue their walk back to their flat. Suddenly a beam of light streaked towards them through the sky, headed directly for the Torchwood hub.   
  
“The Sycorax must have deployed a weapon as they were leaving!! RUN!!” Jack yelled as started to turn and run back to the Hub. “The shields around Torchwood can take almost any kind of energy weapon impact, but the rift generator will go critical within 5 minutes of absorbing it unless we reset it.”   
  
“Jack WAIT!!” Rose screamed as she watched in disbelief as the energy beam was intercepted by a column of bright white light. “Tha… That’s coming from…”  
  
“The flat… and the TARDIS!” the Doctor finished her statement and took off at a run toward the shared flat. Within a heartbeat, Jack and Rose were at a dead run beside him. They somehow made it up the stairs and before Jack could pull out his key, the Doctor had sonic’d the lock and pushed the door open. All three stepped into the room and froze. The crystal was surrounded by a harsh white glow and it appeared that it was feeding on the energy from whatever weapon the Sycorax had deployed. Within a minute the light faded and a shape emerged.   
  
Jack, Rose, and the Doctor stared in disbelief as that shape resolved itself into a distinctive blue box.   
  



	13. Chapter 13

“Is that…”   
  
“Is she back?”   
  
Their paralysis released - Rose, Jack, and the Doctor rushed toward the Police Box in the center of the room. Hesitantly, the Doctor reached out to touch it pulling off his gloves and throwing them on the ground. A laugh burbled out of his throat as his hand met solid wood. Grinning like a madman, he walked around it trailing his hand around it, while Jack and Rose stepped up to touch it as well. Their smiles were almost as bright and their joy as great as the Doctor’s.   
  
When the Doctor came back to the door he paused hand hovering above the handle. Rose and Jack flanked him and they all held their breath as the Doctor closed the distance between his hand and the handle. “Here we go,” he whispered.   
  
All three held their breath as the Doctor slowly pushed open the door. When he stepped inside, Rose and Jack saw him visibly deflate and he stumbled. He opened the door as wide as it was able and let the others see that inside the box were four solid blue walls.   
  
“She is just a shell. Not bigger on the inside,” the Doctor tried to keep the despair from his voice.   
  
“I am so sorry,” Rose responded quietly as tears slipped quietly down her cheeks. She wrapped her arms around him, stroked his back and offered what little comfort she could even as she felt part of her heart cracking. She could feel the Doctor holding back sobs as his body trembled slightly. She pressed a kiss to his forehead. As if the kiss was permission, the veneer cracked and the sobs that he had held back wracked his body. Tears streamed down his cheeks. Without shame he held tighter to Rose and let all of his shattered hopes flow.   
  
Jack watched the man who had held several enemies at bay without showing a shred emotion, the man who had to let so many of his friends leave his life with only the barest display of emotion, break down completely in Rose’s arms as he discovered the one constant he had always depended on was no longer what it had been. Tears started flowing unchecked down his cheeks as well, but he knew that for all of his sadness, it was nothing compared to what the Doctor must be feeling, so without further conscious thought, he stepped up and wrapped his arms around the Doctor as well, sandwiching him between the two people who cared for him beyond all time or reason.   
  
Rose and Jack held the Doctor until his sobs quieted, offering their love and unconditional support. Neither was sure how long the three of them stood there, silently sharing their grief, but like all things, eventually control returned and the Doctor took a deep shaky breath and small step, indicating that they should let him go. Without speaking they led him over to the couch.   
  
Rose gestured for Jack to sit. “I am going to make some tea for all of us. Be right back.”   
  
Jack took off his greatcoat, gloves, and scarf tossing them on a chair before sitting on one end of the couch. Without conscious thought, the Doctor listlessly did the same before lying down next to him, putting his head on Jack’s lap, and closing his eyes, still needing the human contact. Jack softly stroked his hair, a gesture of comfort to ease the depth of sorrow. _He needs us and he isn’t afraid any more of letting it show. The full blooded time lord represses emotion and denies all but the most superficial. The human hybrid time lord can acknowledge and isn’t ashamed of them. Further, he knows that repressing them with only destroy him eventually – turning him cold, cynical, and hard._ Another thought crossed Jack’s mind. _For all that I would die for the other Doctor without thought… I will fight to live for this one. I thought I loved him before. I KNOW I love him now. This is my Doctor._ Jack looked up and caught Rose’s eyes, seeing the same conviction there. _This is Rose’s Doctor too. The other made a choice to leave her here because he was afraid to watch her die. This Doctor will watch her live… and I will be there every moment of it as well. I won’t leave either of them_.   
  
Rose had taken off her coat, scarf, and gloves in the kitchen, so when she returned to the men, she was once again in her jeans and loose sweater. The crystal around her neck glowed softly. She carried with her three steaming mugs of tea, which she set carefully on the table. Seeing the Doctor lying quietly in Jack’s lap, she smiled slightly and bent to lay a kiss on his forehead before pressing a soft kiss on Jack’s lips. She could feel his emotion in her head as she was in the kitchen and his resolve at the end of whatever he had decided. Though she was unable to understand in words exactly what he was thinking, she was able to understand the emotion behind it. She sensed it revolved around the three of them and based on the conviction at the end, she made the conscious decision that she would do anything to make sure both of them knew that she was willing to fight for them.   
  
“Thank you,” Jack said quietly as he nodded to the cup of tea. He reached for the cup and took a small sip.   
  
“You are welcome. I think we all need a bit of it. I was tempted to put something a bit stronger in it, but decided that can always come later.” She smiled wobbly. “Probably due to our encounter earlier with the Sycorax, I couldn’t stop thinking about the Doctor striding out of the TARDIS in a pair of borrowed pajamas saying a good strong cup of tea is all he needed.”   
  
“I wish I could have seen that encounter,” Jack responded.   
  
“You did get my hand out of it,” the Doctor said quietly letting them know he was still awake, though he kept his eyes closed, “and without that, I wouldn’t be here right now, so thank you, if I hadn’t said so before.”   
  
“You are welcome. I never would have found you again without it.”   
  
“Hmm…” The Doctor replied.   
  
Rose looked at both of them fondly even as her sadness remained, twirling the crystal around her neck absently. She started to sit down on the chair next to them, when something in the blue box caught her eye. Without thinking, she got up and walked over to it. Holding tightly to her necklace, she bent down and reached for something on the floor of the box.   
  
“What is it Rose?” Jack asked curiously, not daring to let hope enter his voice.   
  
Rose reached out to touch the center of the box where a glowing light was emanating from a spherical crystal. When her hand touched it, she was thrust back into the emotions that hit her yesterday evening as the three of them were dancing. With a slight cry, she lost her balance. The hand holding her necklace automatically caught the wall of the box and the connection ceased immediately. She could no longer even see the crystal sphere. Intrigued, Rose sat more firmly on her knees, grabbed the necklace again with one hand. As long as she had her hand on the crystal the TARDIS had given her, she could see the sphere, but as soon as she let go it was gone. Touching it again, she was pulled back into the memories. A huge smile blossomed on her face as she turned back to the men on the couch.   
  
“Rose. What is it? What do you see?” This time the curiosity and hope leaked through Jack’s voice.   
  
The hope in Jack’s voice caused the Doctor to open his eyes. He turned his head to Rose just in time to see her grinning back at them with a 1000 watt smile.   
  
“Touch your crystals.” Rose said eagerly.   
  
Without thinking twice, both men reached into their shirts and pulled out the crystal pendants they wore around their necks. As soon as their fingers touched them, they could see a glow in the center of the blue box.   
  
With a cry, the Doctor was on his feet and across the room before he consciously had time to realize what had happened; Jack a mere heartbeat behind him. Both knelt behind Rose, who made room for them at the entrance.   
  
Heart beating wildly, the Doctor reached for the glowing sphere. As soon as he touched it, he was sucked into his memories, one of which from so long ago that it had been all but forgotten came to the surface, with what he would swear was gentle chiding. Pulling his hand back from the crystal, he flopped against the door laughing uncontrollably. Rose just stared at him with a grin as Jack took his turn touching the sphere. His first reaction was stunned amazement, but within moments, he too was smiling and radiating happiness. Without thinking he planted a kiss on both Rose and the still hysterically laughing Doctor.   
  
Finally the Doctor calmed and Rose was able to ask, “I know what the TARDIS showed me, but I am guessing it showed you something else, because I have never seen you laugh this hard. Not even when we were hit with laughing dust on Melodioux XIII.”   
  
“It’s because I am a bloody idiot. Idiot Doctor that’s me!” he replied still grinning. “The old girl reminded me of my class on TARDIS’s back when I was a child on Gallifrey. When they are growing they form their shape first, but they need a large amount of energy to do so. That’s why she absorbed the last attack from the Sycorax, she was able to convert the energy into something she could use to make her body. But it’s not until the Heart is fully formed that the ship is complete. That’s when she gets bigger on the inside. She still has more growing to do.”   
  
“What about the fact that we can only see the crystalline sphere when we are touching the crystals she gave us?” Jack asked curiously.   
  
“Chameleon circuit. Hide in plain sight. You can only really see her if you have the right key.” The Doctor held up his crystal pendant. “That’s why she gave us these.”   
  
“She is brilliant.” Rose said, caressing the outside of the box. She felt a warm pulse of contentment at her neck.   
  
“Yes she is.” Jack said doing the same and getting the same kind of pulse. “I think she likes to be stroked.”   
  
“What girl doesn’t?” Rose answered cheekily.   
  
“Of course she does,” the Doctor said. “Why do you think I was always touching her?”   
  
Rose started laughing as she remembered a conversation she had with Sarah Jane about just that subject. Jack grinned as he remembered telling Ianto about the Doctor’s quirks after a particularly robust sex session.   
  
“Wot?!?” the Doctor asked, which only caused both of them to giggle harder. “No really… What?”   
  
Biting her lip, Rose responded. “Nothing, sorry just an old memory and I am guessing Jack had the same.”   
  
“I promise to diligently stroke her whenever I can,” Jack promised with a straight face before breaking out into a smirk, “As well as any other girls who may need it. Time lords too. I am selfless that way.”   
  
“Oi, watch that or I may take you up on it,” Rose punched Jack lightly before rolling to her feet. “I think this day calls for a toast. Jack do you have any bubbly?”   
  
_After what the TARDIS just showed me, you better take me up on it._ Jack grinned. Out loud he responded. “Bottom drawer of the fridge. Kept cold of course. Here, let me get you some glasses.” He got up and followed her into the kitchen.   
  
The Doctor leaned back against the TARDIS not wanting to move for at least another minute. He fingered the crystal around his neck the same way Rose had done earlier. It was rapidly becoming an unconscious gesture for all of them as he had caught Jack doing the same as he was teasing Rose. _So old girl, do you forgive me for forgetting? For doubting you?_ The crystal pulsed in his hand and his mind was drawn into another image of him, Jack and Rose flying through the stars during the day and making love together through the night. _Now stop that. I get it. I am working on it. Rose isn’t ready for that._ The Doctor received the equivalent of a mental snort in his head before getting an image of what could only be one of Rose’s fantasies, since the things that the Doctor and Jack were doing to her was clearly from her perspective. Immediately blood rushed to a certain part of his anatomy, and he groaned. _OK, maybe she is closer to ready for it then I thought._ The TARDIS showed him another image, this time from Jack’s point of view. _Damn 51st Century humans and their complete lack of shame. I never would have thought of that, but now I won’t be able to stop._ With a growl, he let go of the pendant, forcing the images to cease. However, he could sense the TARDIS’s displeasure at his action, because it the crystal gave him an electrical shock as it fell back against his skin. “Ow!”   
  
Rose walked back into the room and looked at him curiously as he rubbed the top of his sternum while getting to his feet. Walking over she handed him a glass of faint pink champagne.   
  
Jack was behind her; his hand casually on her back. He set the bottle on the coffee table before raising his glass. “To the TARDIS. May her heart grow to be complete, so we can fly away to the stars.”   
  
“To the TARDIS!” they both echoed as pulses of pleasure hit their necks.   
  
“Huh?” Jack said puzzled. “I felt that and I wasn’t touching her that time.”   
  
“Yeeeaaahhh… she seems to be getting stronger. If you hold the crystal, watch out, she is getting kind of pushy. There’s something she wants and she isn’t being shy about making her wishes known. Graphically.” The Doctor replied. He felt that they deserved a warning.   
  
“What is it?” Rose asked curiously.   
  
“Weeeelll…,” the Doctor took a deep breath before choosing his words carefully, “She seems to think that we all be better off if we-“  
  
“Hold on, my pocket is buzzing,” Rose pulled out her phone and looked at it. “It’s Dad. It must be him calling about the situation with the emotion devices at Torchwood London. Sorry, I have to take this. Hi Dad…”   
  
The conversation was brief but the growing tension in Rose’s body let the men know that the news wasn’t good. Her next words confirmed it. “I can’t wait for the zeppelin. If it’s as bad as you say, I need to get there as soon as possible. I’ll change now, pack some things and take a cycle. I know there is one in Torchwood’s garages that has a 200 mile range. I can be there in 3 ½ hours. That will get me there and I can either take a zeppelin back or wait the few days for the charge to reset. What I wouldn’t give for an old Earth car right now… ‘Kay. See you soon. Just quarantine as best you can. You may want to use tranq gas… Should have known you would already think of it. Love you, Dad.”   
  
Rose clicked her phone off and set the barely touched champagne flute down on the table. Turning to the Doctor and Jack she said over her shoulder and she ran to her bedroom to pull out her cold weather cycle gear and began to put it on. “Emergency situation at Torchwood London. The Sycorax invasion attempt spiked the already intense emotions caused by the cat-clocks and sent the base into a frenzy. Dad had to initiate Protocol VII which means he had to flood the buildings with a non-lethal tranquilizer gas. He has five hours until people start to wake up. He couldn’t find a psychic able to block the effects, so right now I am all they have.”   
  
“We are coming with you.” The Doctor said.   
  
“Let me get something warm,” Jack echoed.   
  
“Can’t loves. Torchwood Cardiff only has one long range cycle and it only seats one. I can’t wait. I need to get there first. Call up a zeppelin. I will meet you there in 6-7 hours.” Rose finished zipping up her suit and pulled out a helmet from her closet. Kissing both quickly she ran out the door.   
  



	14. Chapter 14

Jack and the Doctor stared at Rose’s retreating back as she ran down the stairs and out the door, adjusting an earpiece, and clutching her helmet as she sprinted the few blocks to the Hub. As they turned back into the room, the Doctor already had his phone out and was arranging for a zeppelin to pick them up within the next half hour.  
  
Hanging up the phone, he said, “Come on Jack, we need to get ready to go.”  
  
“Should we pack some clothes or something? How long are we going to be in London?” “Brilliant idea, especially since Rose ran out of here, without anything. Hopefully we will only be there for a day or two, but you know how that often works out. It wouldn’t hurt to pack for a week just in case.”  
  
Jack rummaged in a closet and pulled out a large duffel bag. “I only have the one, so we will have to share.”  
  
“Not a problem,” the Doctor replied as he quickly pulled out shirts, underwear, socks, and a couple pairs of slacks. He ran to the bathroom and grabbed an armful of his and Rose’s toiletries.  
  
Jack pulled the same, throwing them in the duffel before dashing into Rose’s room to grab her some stuff as well, the Doctor right behind. As a team, the Doctor pulled jeans and sweaters out of her closet, while Jack grabbed her underthings. Within ten minutes they were also rushing out the door, the bag slung across Jack’s back as they ran to the Hub’s landing pad. Within another fifteen, they were in the air.  
  
Sitting back against one of the cushions on the couch in the zeppelin’s interior, Jack turned to the Doctor, “Is Rose going to make it in time?”  
  
“She should, Torchwood cycles are enhanced so they have a longer and faster range than normal.”  
  
“It was one of the weirdest things I noticed here. There are cars, but they are all electric and only have a range of 100 miles before they have to charge. No petrol cars. Long distance travel is done by rail or zeppelin.” Jack made idle conversation in an attempt to cover his worry for Rose.  
  
“Yeah. Divergent technology and all that. Quite fascinating really – far less air pollution and since all cities are rail-linked, moving from one city to the next is more efficient 97.3% of the time.”  
  
“Just not now.” Jack grumbled.  
  
“No.” The Doctor lapsed back into silence.  
  
Jack was restless. He would get up off the couch, pace the length of the room several times, flop back on the couch, and then start the process over. He knew that Rose was ahead of them on the road and that she would be more than capable of dealing with the immediate issue before they arrived, but he hated the fact that they weren’t there with her. _I have to trust her. I DO trust her. She is amazing… I just hate not being able to protect her._  
  
“Jack!” the Doctor’s voice held exasperation. “Sit down. There isn’t anything that you can do right now and you are driving me crazy.”  
  
“How do you do it Doctor? How can you stay calm when Rose is out there by herself on a motorcycle at night?”  
  
“I’m not, but I know that I have to trust her.” The Doctor echoed Jack’s earlier thought. “After I was stranded here, I got a little overprotective. It was probably a human reaction to the stress of the metacrisis, now that I think about it, but I almost lost Rose over it before I even had a chance to get her.”  
  
“What do you mean?” Jack sat back down on the couch.  
  
“All the human emotions that the Time Lords had repressed were making themselves known. Fear, anger, jealousy - all were more intense than I had ever experienced before. Often I think we forget that the Rose that came back to save the Earth is a radically different Rose than the shop girl we first met. Absorbing the heart of the Time Vortex to destroy the Daleks and bring you back started the change. But since I had a new body I was getting used to, I didn’t really see the changes since I was still figuring mine out. Not that she changed in a bad way, mind you, but she grew tougher, more resilient, more brilliant. She started thinking her way out of trouble and was able to give me perspective. Then when I lost her…” The Doctor’s voice cracked and he paused.  
  
Jack felt a lump in his throat as he remembered seeing Rose’s name on the Canary Wharf list. Without thinking, he linked his hand with the Doctor’s to offer him support.  
  
The Doctor took a deep breath, “Then when I lost her, she became even more. I honestly didn’t realize how long she was trapped here until she told us, but she is definitely altered by it. She is used to being alone. More used to it than I am actually; maybe more than you. She had to depend on herself to be able to world jump successfully. I forgot that when I formed, because even though I have his memories, the part of them with her in them are from when she was still more dependent on me. So tried to protect her. Apparently I was too overprotective and bordering on obsessive. She gave me an ultimatum one day – Lighten Up or Leave.” He chuckled. “I left Rose once and it about killed me. I wasn’t going to do it again. She finally got through to me how she is far better as a partner, watching my back as I watch hers, than a companion. Since then, she has saved me almost as many times as I have saved her. I respect her and I trust her. That’s why I know that she can do this without me, even though I want to be there with her.”  
  
“That makes sense. I just…”  
  
The Doctor squeezed Jack’s hand. “You love her and don’t want to see her hurt. Trust me, I get that. But a better part of loving someone is being willing to let them be who and what they need to be. I don’t want to stand in front of Rose anymore… I want to stand beside her.” He slanted a glance sideways and said quietly. “Can you do the same for her? Or for me for that matter? You aren’t the same Jack we first picked up. You have saved the world several times in your own right. I trust you and I will stand beside you.”  
  
A tear slipped down Jack’s cheek at the Doctor’s words. “I want that so much. I loved my team and I am starting to care about this one, but I always felt that I needed to be the strong one and stand in front of them. But it has been a very long time since I have had someone I trusted completely as a partner. I do trust you, Doctor. I always have… and you are right. I need to do the same for Rose. She deserves that much at least. She is more than capable of saving the world – No… she HAS saved the world, repeatedly.”  
  
The Doctor silently brushed the tear away and stared hard into Jack’s deep blue eyes for a few moments, hand loosely held at the back of Jack’s neck. Jack stared back, willing to lose himself in them. A few heartbeats passed and a whisper crossed the Doctor’s lips, “Jack… there is something that you need to know. Something I started to tell you both earlier… something that the TARDIS nee-… No. Something that I need… that Rose needs… which will ultimately help the TARDIS…” his voice trailed off.  
  
“What is it?” Jack managed to choke out against the lump in his throat and the sensations that were flooding his body – hope, desire, love and a faint wisp of fear.  
  
“You.” The Doctor breathed and closed the distance between their lips. The kiss was light, questioning, hinting at the desire the Doctor had kept hidden for so many years.  
  
As Jack felt the Doctor’s lips flutter lightly against his, teasing and hinting at a deeper question, a small moan slipped through Jack’s lips. As if that was the cue he needed, the Doctor lips became harder, eager, and the tip of his tongue flicked out to caress the seam of Jack’s lips. Jack opened his mouth immediately and slid his tongue along the Doctor’s, one hand going into the Doctor’s hair the other slipping around his back. For several minutes, he let his longest secret dream go on. Only when the need for air became critical, did Jack finally pull away, breathing hard. He was secretly thrilled to see the Doctor was in the same state. “Wow.”  
  
The Doctor had a lopsided grin and absently ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah.”  
  
“So that was…” Jack wasn’t sure what he was trying to say.  
  
“It was.”  
  
“And…”  
  
The Doctor sighed, “and truth. I have wanted to do that for a very long time. I just couldn’t. When I set the TARDIS to redirect yours and Rose’s thoughts whenever they started to stray. I did the same for me. ‘Friendship is fine, but hanky-panky on the TARDIS leads to trouble.’ That was one of the things that my old mentor drilled into me.” He smiled a little sadly. “It never was a problem, actually. For eight regenerations, I was able to maintain the control I needed to never let anything develop deeper than friendship. Even with Sarah Jane, who was brilliant.”  
  
“What changed?”  
  
“My ninth regeneration came out of the dying of my people and in a way, at my hand. I lost everything and it seemed to me that the rules I had been told weren’t enough to save my world. I started to question everything. I got bitter and resentful, though I managed to hide it well enough… Then a yellow girl took my hand without a second thought and for the first time I offered twice. A few months later a cocky ex-con showed me that it is possible to change. That the past self didn’t matter it was the future self that determined worth.”  
  
Jack grinned, “Cocky huh? Well… maybe a little. But you forgot gorgeous.”  
  
The Doctor gave him a mock-glare. “A bit full of ourselves aren’t we.”  
  
“Truth is truth… but I want to hear the rest of it. Why now?”  
  
“Because of so many things. In many ways, I am back at that point again, though this time I don’t have the ability to regenerate, so I intend to make the most of this life. I thought I would be spending it with Rose. When you handed me that piece of crystal coral and I realized that I could have a TARDIS again, I knew that you were here for a reason… and that it would take both of you to be complete.” The Doctor turned his head and blushed.  
  
Jack gently turned the Doctor’s head back to face him. He leaned forward and placed another kiss against his lips. “I think that is the most perfect thing anyone has said to me in a very long time. I have wanted to hear that since shortly after I met you.”  
  
The Doctor enjoyed the warmth of Jack’s lips for a moment before pulling back. “Mmm… nice. But now we have another problem… well not problem exactly, but situation that we need to figure out.”  
  
“Rose?”  
  
“Rose.”  
  
“I love her, Doctor. I know that she is yours, but I can’t help it.”  
  
“I know… and the thing is; I don’t think she is really just mine, at least not anymore.”  
  
“What do you mean?”  
  
For the rest of the trip into London, the Doctor explained the images that the TARDIS had been communicating with him. Jack in turn passed on the images she had given him. Their conversation soon turned into a discussion on how and when they would approach Rose together. Throughout it all, their hands remained lightly joined and the crystals at their throats, pulsed.  
  



	15. Chapter 15

Despite being in cold weather riding gear, Rose was thoroughly cold and stiff as she pulled up in front of the glass building of Torchwood One. Getting off the cycle gingerly, she stretched for a moment before removing her gloves and helmet. Knowing the front doors would be locked; she walked quickly to a nondescript door behind a potted plant and laid her hand on the scanner. Immediately the door opened and she rushed to the elevator at the end of the hall. From there it was a short trip up to the 63rd floor. Striding out of the elevator, she set her helmet and gloves on Ianto’s desk and walked into her father’s office without bothering to knock.   
  
Pete Tyler sat behind the desk, tired eyes closed, and his head cradled in his hands. A laptop stood open on his desk. He looked up immediately as the door to his office opened. A tired smile crossed his lips as his daughter crossed over to him. Despite the fact that technically she hadn’t existed to him for the first twenty years of her life, he had come to love her as deeply as if he had known her for her entire life. She was his daughter, in so many ways – her intelligence, her ability to negotiate with aliens and board members alike, and her drive to make a difference, even while she had Jackie’s passion and huge heart. He didn’t know if it was the Doctor’s influence on her that made her or if she would have naturally turned out that way, but Pete was proud of the woman who stood in front of him, and because of that, he didn’t mince words. Walking over to her, he gave her a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek before saying, “Hello love, I am so glad you are here. I need your skills. I may have understated the issue we have.”   
  
“Understated? What you told me was serious enough to get me on a bike in 40 degree weather in the middle of the night, after a three day issue with the Sycorax. If it is worse than you said, you should have called me immediately.”   
  
“I needed your expertise with the Sycorax, since their focus was Cardiff this time, and quite frankly I didn’t have anyone to spare to send you. I will need a full report on that later, but now I need to update you. I know you probably haven’t had a chance to watch the telly, but in the last 48 hours we have seen escalation in several feuding countries and several riots have broken out across London. We have seen 10 civilian casualties of the riots, and 40 others have been hospitalized. We don’t have a number on suicides, but we are estimating it around 25. No one can identify the source of the anger or depression but it palpable when you walk the streets. We couldn’t find a Psi with a high xenon particle amount, but we were able to create a gadget to eliminate the bio-field that rendered the cat-clocks invisible to the naked eye. We finished dissecting one this afternoon and determined that they are networked, linking to a central point somewhere in extreme northern Scotland – a small town called Durness to be precise. We inserted a program to identify the other collectors, to see how widespread the issue is. Each collector is represented by a red dot.” He turned his laptop around.   
  
Rose gasped, “Great Britain is almost completely covered and it looks like it is spreading to the rest of Europe.”   
  
“Exactly. This information is live. Every 6 hours another hundred thousand come online. They appear to be targeting individual homes as well as businesses, which would make sense since the stronger emotions like anger, rage, and despair are more closely felt at home. At this rate the world will be covered in them within the month. I have spoken with our counterparts in the other European countries as well as our allies in the US. Right now they are content to let us take the lead, since we have the best track record. The US is currently fast-tracking a chemical agent similar to an extreme antidepressant that can be added to water supplies that helps minimize the rage and despair, but it is still at least a week from viability and the side-affects are unknown. Needless to say, we all would prefer if we don’t have to go that route.”   
  
Rose took a deep breath, “OK. What about here. I know you said you used the tranq gas, but how many people are we talking about on premises. We have over 10,000 staff in all positions. I should be able to touch them and it will act as a temporary break against the effects, but I can’t continuously keep in contact with that many. Especially if you need me in Durness.”   
  
“I assume the Doctor is on his way?”   
  
“Yeah, he and Jack are on a zeppelin now, they should be here in a few hours.”   
  
“Jack’s with him? Hmmm… Good. Better actually. I could use both their expertise. I will need to send you three to Durness, as soon as it’s light, but for right now, I need you to walk the departments and touch whoever you can. As soon as you let me know about the collectors, I had all non-essential staff telecommute. It’s not ideal and they are still at risk, but they aren’t near world destroying objects. We have roughly 500 people onsite at the moment that are tranq’d.”   
  
“Oh good. It was gonna take me forever to hit all 63 floors and the 2 outbuildings. How about you and mum?”   
  
“I was getting hit by the fear and depression rather than the anger, especially after seeing how the dots are increasing. But thankfully, giving you a hug and a kiss has apparently broken the spell.” He winked at her. “As for your mum, she is wearing an emotion dampening amulet, but knowing how our Jackie likes to argue, we decided that I should play it safe and I have been staying here.”   
  
Rose grinned, “Ya, that’s mum. She must be driving the nanny and the staff barmy. What about Tony?”   
  
“That’s the odd thing; your brother doesn’t seem affected by it at all. Most children under the age of ten don’t seem to be affected. Maybe they are more used to radical emotional shifts.”   
  
“That’s a good thing.”   
  
“I agree. Shall we get started?” Pete gestured for her to precede him from the office.   
  
Rose unzipped her jacket, rolled up the cuffs, and took a deep breath. _Here we go._   
  


********************

The Doctor and Jack arrived at Torchwood just as Rose was finishing the last of the cryo labs. Pete suggested that they meet back up in his office. By the time he and Rose arrived, the Doctor and Jack had taken the initiative to start a fresh pot of coffee. Jack handed a cup to Rose as she walked in as the Doctor did the same to Pete.

“Thank you,” the weariness was evident in Rose’s voice as she gratefully sipped at the warm beverage.

“My thanks as well. I can see why Rose enjoys working with you; you seem to know exactly how to anticipate her needs.” Pete narrowed his gaze and directed his statement to Jack to watch the reaction.

“Dad, stop it,” Rose said while the Doctor shot Jack a sympathetic look. “A good team will always anticipate the needs of its members and the Doctor, Jack, and I have always worked well as a team. But in this case, it wasn’t difficult to guess. We have been up for over 24 hours at this point, so coffee would be logical, since we probably have several hours more to go.” She flopped on the couch and took another sip of the coffee, sighing in bliss. _Jack does know exactly how I like my coffee._

Pete tried to hide his smile but the twinkling in his eyes gave it away, as he watched Rose curl up on the couch, the Doctor on one side of her and Jack on the other. Both were unconsciously leaning their bodies toward her in a protective way. _Team… Right… They are a bit more than just a team or they will be sooner rather than later. The Doctor has always been that way with Rose, but this thing with Jack is new. I didn’t miss the oh-so-casual hand the Doctor had at Jack’s elbow when we first walked in and they handed us coffee. Rose seems to be splitting her attention between them equally. Very interesting. Team triads are rare, but I have worked with enough of them over the years to see the signs of one budding. This one shows signs of being a personal triad as well as a professional one, however, which will cause some interesting challenges not the least of which is the lingering bias against non-traditional relationships. Our world is getting more accepting, but it’s still not exactly commonplace. I will let them tell Jackie, though. She still has a bit of old Earth hang-ups._ He took a sip of his coffee, poured a bit more cream into it and pulled up the chair across from them. “So Rose has broken the connection on all the people in the buildings, but Rose mentioned that you were able to disable the ones in your flat. How long would it take you to get the ones in this building? We have the bio-dampeners turned off, so they are all visible.”

“I would need to tweak Rose and Jack’s sonic blasters, but once that’s done it is quick enough work. A few hours… depending on how many are on each floor.”

“Good. Better idea. Do the blasters have to be sonic or could the frequencies of the stun lasers be done instead?”

“Yeah. I think so. Will take a bit longer, though. Stun lasers are harder than sonics.”

“What’s the plan, Dad?” Rose asked.

“My thought is if the Doctor can reconfigure a dozen stun guns to destroy the devices, then I can have security sweep the building tomorrow. Which would let you get on the way to Durness.”

“What’s in Durness?” Jack asked curiously.

“Dad was able to insert a program into the collectors which showed that they are linked. They seem to be transmitting the stored emotion to a central location in Durness. He wants to send us to deal with the entity that is likely controlling it.”

“And by destroying all the collectors in the building here, it lets them know that we are on to them.” Jack finished the statement.

“Yeah, but Durness is 16 hours away by zeppelin at least,” The Doctor said.

“We just finished an enhanced zeppelin. It can make the trip in eight hours. I know it’s still not as fast as the jet planes that Jackie keeps talking about, but it’s faster than anything that we have at the moment.” Pete replied.

“That’s great, Dad. Is it ready to go?” at Pete’s nod, she continued. “Then while the Doctor is reconfiguring the stun guns, Jack and I can start destroying the ones in the highest security areas, that way the staff that I broke the link to can start getting immediately to work. Then we can jump on the zeppelin and head to Durness. Would that work?”

“Absolutely. Rose, Jack, give me your blasters.” The Doctor took the device and using his sonic screwdriver tweaked the settings. In less than a minute he handed it back. “There. That should work. I just enhanced the secondary frequency.”

“Thanks Doc,” Jack said with a wink before getting up off the couch. Holding his hand out to Rose he said, “Interested in some target practice?”

Rose responded to his grin with one of her own. Putting her hand in his, she let him pull her up. “Care to make a wager? Fewest shots with the cleanest hits wins.”

“You are on, blondie,” Jack smirked. “Be prepared to lose. I am an excellent shot.”

“We will see, flyboy. Won’t we?” Rose glanced at the Doctor, who was chuckling silently.

“What’s the prize?”

“Dinner?”

“Obviously, you don’t trust your skills that much or you would go bigger?”

“Oh really?!?” Rose arched an eyebrow at Jack. “I was trying to make it easy on you. What do you suggest?”

Jack glanced at Pete who was watching the conversation with a smirk and the Doctor who was still laughing silently. “Dinner and abject humiliation. Loser has to wear an outfit of the winner’s choice and do karaoke. Winner chooses song.”

Rose laughed and replied, “You are on.”

Pete and the Doctor looked at each other then looked at the duo. As one they burst out in laughter, Jack turned to look at them. “What?”

“Twenty quid on Rose,” Pete said to the Doctor.

“Twenty quid says they tie.” The Doctor replied with a grin.

“Done.”

“Hey!” Jack sounded affronted. Rose just giggled. “What if I win?”

“You get twenty quid from each of us.” The Doctor and Peter said in unison.

“But it’s not going to happen.” Pete laughed.

“C’mon flyboy, show me your mad skills,” Rose slid an arm around Jack’s waist. She turned to the Doctor. “Two hours enough time for you?”

“Should be about perfect,” he replied, getting up off the couch as well. He leaned over and planted a kiss on her cheek. “If you do tie, I fully expect to see you both doing karaoke.”

“Done.”

The Doctor leaned in to whisper in her ear, “Go easy on him.”

Rose grinned back at him, “Now why would I want to do that?”

*********************

Two hours later, Jack and Rose returned to Pete’s office. Pete was in the process of uploading information to the zeppelin and the Doctor was finishing the last of the stun lasers. He sat the last one next to its counterparts with a flourish. With a grin he looked up at the obviously tired duo. “So who won?”

“You did.” Jack said, trying to suppress a yawn.

“We cleared 136 devices total. For both us, 67 shots were clean and precise the first time. We each had one device that took two shots.” Rose flopped on the couch and closed her eyes.

Pete walked over to the Doctor and with a smile, handed him a twenty. “You know your partners. That’s good.”

“Yes, I do.” The Doctor replied. He met Pete’s eyes and the nonverbal communication between them said far more than either of them anticipated. Without saying a word, Pete let the Doctor know that he approved of the partnership in whatever form it would eventually take. The Doctor acknowledged the trust and silently swore to never give Pete a reason to regret it.

“I am glad of that.” Pete’s voice slipped into Director of Torchwood mode. “Now, we are set here. The three of you should board the zeppelin and head for Durness. Your trip should take roughly eight and a half hours. I suggest that you spend at least six hours of that sleeping.” He looked at the three. They appeared on the edge of collapse. “I take that back. I am ordering you to get some sleep. There are several couches on the zeppelin as well as blankets. Winter has already hit Durness, so there is cold weather gear as well as appropriate vehicles. Now go and good luck. If we can end this threat peacefully, please do. If not, do what is necessary for the good of the Earth.”

“Always,” Rose wearily got up from the couch, gave her dad a hug, told him to give her love to her mom and brother, and walked out of the office to the stairs leading to the roof. The Doctor was just a step behind her.

Jack turned to follow them but Pete’s hand on his arm, stopped him briefly. Pete nodded to their retreating backs, “Protect both of them for me.”

Jack looked at Pete and echoed Rose’s earlier statement with emotion, “Always.”


	16. Chapter 16

Jack looked around the zeppelin in amazement. It reminded him a little of the old-Earth pre WWII era zeppelins in terms of comfort, seating, working, and dining areas, but it was thoroughly equipped with up to date computer terminals, weaponry, and modern conveniences. Glancing around to try and see where his partners were, he spotted the Doctor talking with two men who were obviously the captain and first officer. Casually he walked over to join them.   
  
“Jack, this is Captain Charles Smith and his partner and first officer Commander Richard Smith. They will be taking us to Durness. Charles, Richard, meet -”  
  
“Captain Jack Harkness,” Jack held out his hand and said with a smile while the Doctor rolled his eyes. “Pleased to meet you.”   
  
“Oh Doctor you have a live one in him,” Charles said with a grin as both he and Richard shook the offered hand.   
  
“Don’t I know it,” the Doctor sighed. “Jack. Can it.”   
  
“Sorry. Habit.” Jack said unrepentantly before giving the pair a wink.   
  
Richard cleared his throat and threw a glare at his captain, who had winked back unrepentantly. “As we were saying… the Enterprise’s engines are fusion based and run clean. It has allowed us to achieve speeds that were unheard of a few years ago. This is the first generation and still in test phase, which is why it is just the two of us and not a full crew. I hope that won’t be an inconvenience?”   
  
“Not at all,” the Doctor replied. “We are used to taking care of ourselves.” He looked around, “Enterprise, huh? Good name. Solid name.”   
  
“It was the suggestion of Mrs. Tyler.”   
  
“Jackie named it? Figures. She and her daughter are Star Trek fans, though they would never admit it in public.”   
  
“What’s a Star Trek?” Charles voice was puzzled.   
  
“Oh never mind. Old show. Nothing of consequence. No matter,” the Doctor mumbled. He caught Jack smothering a yawn out of the corner of his eye. “Thank you gentlemen, but I will let you get to your work. We’ve been up for near 36 hours at this point, so we are going to take a few winks. Please let us know when we are an hour outside of Durness. Smooth Sailing.”   
  
“Will do, Doctor,” both men snapped a salute and turned to walk down the hall to the bridge.   
  
The Doctor returned the salute before turning to Jack and raising one eyebrow.   
  
“What? Can’t I greet anyone?” Jack replied cheekily, “It was habit, nothing more, I promise. Those two are obviously in a committed relationship. Since I am hoping to be in one myself very soon, it really didn’t mean anything.” Jack’s voice had turned sincere by the end.   
  
“I know,” the Doctor responded with a sigh. “It’s just that I noticed Rose does the same thing and people react the same way to her. I don’t know if my sanity can handle two flirts.”   
  
Jack laughed, “Better get used to it, Doc. She isn’t a naïve child anymore; she is a beautiful, sexy, confident woman. That is what makes her attractive to others. She may flirt, but her heart belongs to you.” _And hopefully to me._  
  
“I do know, and her ability to charm others has successfully stopped two invasions and four attempts at hostile takeover of Torchwood. She’s brilliant.” The Doctor grinned, pride evident in his tone.   
  
‘Yes she is,” Jack stifled another yawn. “Speaking of, where is she?”   
  
The Doctor pointed to a blanket covered couch with a bit of blonde hair poking through the end. “She came up, nodded Hello to the pilots, grabbed a blanket and fell almost immediately asleep. She was exhausted. A 150 mile ride in cold weather followed immediately by breaking the psychic link on 500 people on top of our dealings with the Sycorax, pushed her beyond her limits.”   
  
“Yeah. Plus we destroyed 68 collection devices, which is a feat of mental marksmanship,” Jack said with a mixture of tenderness and awe. “Don’t tell her this, but I think the only reason we tied in that game is that she was exhausted and needed a second shot on the last one. I had no idea how good of a shot she really is. If she was rested, I would have been beaten handily.”   
  
“Part of that is a lingering effect of Bad Wolf, part is just the years of world jumping and needing to hone her reflexes.” The Doctor ran a hand through his hair, tousling the brown strands. “I would have spared her all of it, if there were any logical way to do so at the time.”   
  
“Logic is definitely a Time Lord thing. Personally, I like being an illogical human. It lets me do stuff like this,” He swooped over and kissed the Doctor quickly. Breaking it off, he said with a smirk, “Now that’s you’re part illogical human, you should try the same, sometime.”   
  
The Doctor just smiled, “I may have to do just that. Beware - you and Rose aren’t the only ones who can flirt.” A huge yawn cracked the Doctor’s jaw. “OK. I need sleep. That’s the one thing that I do miss from the old body, the lesser need for sleep. You should grab some too, Jack. We are all going to need to be sharp once we hit Durness.”   
  
“That is my plan,” Jack sat down heavily on a couch and pulled a blanket over him. “Good night, Doctor.”   
  
“Sweet Dreams, Jack.”   
  


********************

Several hours later a quiet beeping, woke Rose. Stretching, she walked over to the console and pushed a flashing button. “Rose Tyler, here.”

“Ms. Tyler, I just wanted to inform you that we are approximately an hour outside of Durness. The weather is clear and we are making good time.” The First Officer’s voice came clearly across the speakers.

“Thank You, Commander. My gratitude for a smooth flight. How are the new engines holding up?”

“Purring like a kitten on catnip, Rose.”

“Good. You and Charles deserve this ship. She is just beautiful.”

“We are honored to have her.” The Captain’s voice answered truthfully then turned coy. “Speaking of beautiful, who is that lovely man you and the Doctor brought with you?”

Rose laughed, “Is Richard not keeping you busy enough?”

She could hear the laughter on the other side as well as a slight growl of jealousy from Richard’s mouth. Charles responded, “Oh he keeps me plenty busy, don’t worry your luscious locks about that, but a boy can dream about a threesome, can’t he?”

_You aren’t the only one dreaming about that one._ Out loud she said, barely able to control her laughter, “He is a very good friend that the Doctor and I have known for years and travelled with. I would trust him with my life. He’s also a huge flirt, not unlike a certain other Captain I know.”

“Oooh snap!” Richard’s voice came across the conn.

“Pfft… Very Good Friend, huh?” Charles voice came back, “Sounds like I am not the only one dreaming of threesomes.”

Rose choked and quickly changed the subject, “OK guys, I need coffee if I am going to be able to function once we touch down. Let me know if anything comes up that needs my attention.”

“Avoidance of the issue is acknowledgement of it,” Charles voice sing-songed.

“Smooth Flight, Captain.” Rose said formally.

“We will do our best to make it so, Ms. Tyler. Bridge out.” Charles responded equally as formal, but there were underlying hints of laughter that let Rose know her friends were not going to let the issue rest. Sighing, she turned to make sure both the Doctor and Jack were still asleep, before walking over to one of the appliances in the wall and starting a pot of coffee.

A few minutes later, she set a cup for both Jack and the Doctor on the coffee table centered between the couches and prepared to wake them up. She sat on the edge of the couch containing the Doctor and ran a hand through the glorious mess that was his hair, ending the caress with her hand sliding down to rest on his cheek. She whispered, “Doctor, time to wake up.”

“Mmmnn…,” the Doctor turned his head into her hand and laid a kiss on the palm. “I love it when you wake me up.”

“Yeah?” Rose grinned, “Well you are going to love it even more because I have coffee for you.”

“Rose Tyler, you are a life-saver.” The Doctor grinned and sat up before reaching for the steaming cup. “Ahhh… perfect.” He took another sip. “Are we almost there? Is Jack awake yet?”

“We are about an hour away. Charles is imagining threesomes with him. Richard is trying to ignore it.”

“Charles would. He’s as randy as Jack. It’s a good thing that Richard can keep him in line. Kind of the way that you keep Jack in line, wouldn’t you say?” the Doctor looked slyly at her.

Rose blushed a faint pink, “I don’t know what you are talking about. It seems you are the one that manages to keep him in line.” She looked over at the still sleeping man and a faint crease of worry crossed her forehead. He was sweating lightly and twitching as if he was caught in a nightmare. Without thinking twice she got up and crossed over to him, and sat on the edge of his couch. Using a similar motion to the one she had used earlier with the Doctor, she brushed a stray strand of hair off his forehead and whispered, “Jack, wake up. It’s just a dream.”

Jack’s eyes flew open and focused on Rose, his heart beating wildly. Seeing her, he pulled her into him and wrapped his arms around her, held her tightly and murmured, “You’re here, you’re here, you’re not gone… the Doctor…”

Rose adjusted her body so she was lying on top of the blanket covering Jack and let him hold her. Softly she kept repeating, “It was a dream Jack. Just a dream. I am here. The Doctor is here. Shhhh…” She repeated the litany until his heart calmed and his arms loosened around her.

Sheepishly, Jack said, “I’m sorry. Nightmare. I haven’t had one that strong in years.”

“No worries mate,” the Doctor said sincerely, holding out Jack’s coffee. “It happens to all of us.”

Rose propped herself up on her elbows body still pressed the length of his, “You good now?”

Jack smiled, “Yeah. I’m good, though you are welcome to stay in that position as long as you like. I could even probably manage to get you under the blanket with me.”

Rose laughed and rolled over to sit back on the edge of the couch, while Jack shifted into a sitting position and took the cup from the Doctor.

“He’s flirting, which means he’s fine.” The Doctor rolled his eyes.

“I could wiggle around and make room for you too, Doc.” Jack wagged his eyebrows suggestively.

Rose glanced at her watch, “as much as I would love to see that, we are probably about 45 minutes from Durness. We should gather our gear and get ready.”

“Sorry Jack, duty calls… another time, maybe,” the Doctor flirted, causing Jack to smile.

“I will hold you to that.” Jack took a sip of coffee and let a bit of fire enter his eyes as he caught the Doctor’s eyes before turning to watch Rose pulling something up on the coffee table. “Computer inset into the coffee table? Pure Genius!”

“I thought so, which is why I made the suggestion when Dad was first green-lighting this project. This was going to be our main transport, but that was before we dreamed we would be able to have a TARDIS again. It’s handy for displaying what we need and…” She pushed a button and the image jumped from the table to the air above the table, “It does holograms.”

“Rose Tyler, you are brilliant.” The Doctor said earnestly.

“Thanks.” She then proceeded to show the topographical map of the area which contained a single blinking dot. “That’s the central hub where all the collectors are feeding into. All the roads are snowed over, so we will be on snowmobiles. We are going to have to cross a lake at one point, but sensors indicate that it is frozen, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Good to know. Is there any other Intel from Pete?” the Doctor asked.

“That’s it. From here we go by the seat of our pants.” Rose grinned. “Just like old times.”

The Doctor gave her one of his cheesy grins and Jack just laughed. “It’s more fun this way.”

The first officer’s voice come over the intercom letting them know that they would be landing in fifteen minutes. Together the three of them swallowed the last dregs of their coffee, set their cups in the dishwasher and strolled down the hall to the garage area and all of the winter gear.


	17. Chapter 17

Rose tightened the hood on her jacket a little closer to her head and pulled up the balaclava to cover her mouth and nose. _It’s really cold here - colder than should be actually. Probably has something to so with the central collection point of the alien tech._   
  
“Why does alien tech always seem to change the weather to unseasonably cold?” Jack complained. “Just once, I would love to have it be tropical.”   
  
Rose started giggling.   
  
“What?” Jack asked, “You can’t tell me that you like this biting cold?”   
  
“You know I hate it as much as you do,” Rose replied, “but when you said tropical, I suddenly pictured you in a Hawaiian shirt, flip-flops, and Bermuda shorts, with a coconut drink in one hand and a blaster in the other.”   
  
“Sounds like our brief stop on Hyacinth II,” the Doctor grinned. “Rose, you had gone snorkeling and Jack and I were at the bar. Jack was… well… being Jack and trying to pick up a couple of locals. They probably would have been willing, if I would have let them on the TARDIS, but when a transformer blew in the building next to us, he pulled out a blaster and scared them off. If I remember right, I had warned both of you that weapons were illegal on that planet.”   
  
“I forgot about that.” Jack smiled. “Wonder what happened to them.”   
  
“It was also the reason we left Hyacinth in such a hurry, if you remember,” the Doctor mock glared at Jack.   
  
“All I really remember about that trip is the TARDIS suddenly materializing a few feet above the water where I was swimming and you, Doctor, reaching out to pull me in the ship as Jack was yelling something about the authorities arriving. I had barely hit the floor before you had us dematerialize.” Rose said. “You never did explain why we left in a hurry. You just glared at Jack for two days and told me to drop it when I tried to ask.”   
  
“We would have been disintegrated immediately if we had been caught. Hyacinthians take the no weapons law VERY seriously. It was a serious situation and all Jack was doing was ogling you in your bikini,” the Doctor tried to maintain his serious tone, but the laughter started creeping through. “Not that I blamed him for the ogling part… you did look amazing all dripping wet and glistening on the floor of the TARDIS.”   
  
“Oh you did blame me all right,” Jack muttered. “The TARDIS short-sheeted my bed for a full week after that incident.”   
  
“She blamed you, not me.” The Doctor replied. “Most of my energy was taken up in trying to ignore what I was feeling.” A slight sigh of regret crept into his voice. _My old self was an idiot._  
  
“Ok – that’s it. Once we are done with this assignment, I vote we take a week vacation and go to Hawaii,” Rose said to break the awkward silence that had descended.   
  
“Seconded,” Jack grinned and pulled his balaclava up. “Now let’s get this done. I can almost taste the mai-tai.”   
  
“You just want to see Rose in a bikini again,” the Doctor teased, but he pulled his balaclava up as well and threw his leg over his snowmobile. Within moments, they had coordinated their GPS and were heading toward a blinking red dot in the middle of the town of Durness.   
  


********************

The three snowmobiles cut easily across the snow covered landscape, so within a half hour they were riding up what appeared to be the main street of a small deserted town. Rose, who was riding point, lifted a fist in the air and indicated that they should stop for a moment. They pulled up in front of an abandoned diner.

“What is it?” Jack asked.

“Something is wrong,” Rose replied. “It’s a small town and it’s cold, but this looks like it has been abandoned. There should be signs of people and I don’t see any. This town should have a population of a couple hundred. Some may have left for the winter, but all of them wouldn’t.”

The Doctor fiddled with the scanner in his hand, adjusting some settings with his sonic screwdriver. He held up the scanner for a read. The tone of his voice was grim as he read the results. “There is only one other life-sign besides us. It’s coming from the Police Station up ahead. It’s faint. The thing is - I have residue readings of organic matter…”

“What do you mean residue?” Jack asked quietly.

“Specific organic particles that make up the human body… but they are dispersed. Disintegrated. Ash… and snow.” The Doctor responded just as quietly. He looked at the scanner again and broke out into a run towards the Station. Over his shoulder, he yelled, “the last life sign is fading. We have to hurry!”

Immediately they started running, within moments, the Doctor had sonic’d his way through the door to the police station and looked around frantically. He spotted a small huddled bundle in the corner of one of the cells. It appeared to be human, but it was bent, shaking, and muttering to itself incoherently.

Slowly the Doctor approached, while Rose and Jack held their blasters in a defensive posture – eyes scanning the room to see if there were any potential threats.

“Hello…” the Doctor cautiously approached the bundle, “I’m the Doctor, who are you?”

A manic giggle escaped out of the mouth of the bundle and wild madness shown in its eyes. It wore the tattered remains of a police uniform, and said in a chillingly sing-song way, “dead dead … all are dead. It’s in the brain… it’s in the head.”

“What’s in the brain?” The Doctor continued in a soothing voice. He made some adjustments to his screwdriver and scanned the officer.

“mad mad… all is mad. Feel the pain… our heads are bad.”

“What is bad in your head?” The Doctor tried again and adjusted a few more settings, smacking the screwdriver a couple of times against his hand before scanning him again.

“Who… Who are you?” a moment of clarity crossed the officer’s eyes, “Never mind that – Get out of here!! GET OUT OF HERE NOW!! They are coming. They drove the town mad with anger and despair. Everyone turned on each other – beating each other until they were unconscious or dead. Then they came through and vaporized the bodies… Some still had enough energy to scream.” His eyes were haunted and looked to be on the edge of slipping back into madness. “dead dead…”

“Stay with me, stay with me,” the Doctor grabbed his shoulder. “How did you survive?”

The officer’s voice grew faint, “…knocked out behind a bookshelf… don’t think they saw me… kill me… I can hear them in my head… whispering… whispering… always the whispering...” He stumbled and fell over, his left arm exposed for the first time. A long gash ran from his wrist to his elbow, blood dripping sluggishly in the cold. “Kill me please…”

“He’s hurt!” Rose said, rushing towards him.

Jack grabbed her arm and held her back. “There isn’t anything else we can do. He has lost too much blood and his body is shutting down due to the cold.”

“Doctor?!?”

“Jack is right,” the sadness in the Doctor’s voice was evident. “You know what happens, Rose.”

“Then help him or I will.” Rose’s voice held conviction.

“There isn’t anything I can do anymore,” the Doctor’s tone was frustrated. “I can’t reach his mind. That Time Lord telepathy is gone.”

“Then let me,” Rose’s voice was soft as she laid her hand on the Doctor’s shoulder and gestured for him to move. She knelt in front of the officer and ran a finger over the name on the badge before reaching up to cup his cheek. “Officer Trent? I can’t make the whispering go away, but I can help you focus on something else.” She stared into the eyes that were starting to exhibit signs of fear. “Look at me. You can feel me…”

“You… warm… happy… I had forgotten happy… My wife made me happy. She died. Cancer. Two years ago.”

“That’s good. Feel my warmth and think of her. Be happy for her. You can join her now…” Rose’s voice cracked and tears slipped down her cheeks. Together Jack and the Doctor stood beside her, each with a hand on her shoulder.

“Thank you. Thank you, Rose,” the officer’s voice grew fainter, “I can see my wife… she is waiting. She says to tell you they call themselves Doovari…” A faint gasp left his lips and the light faded from his eyes.

Rose sat back on her heels, before reaching out and closing his eyelids. She brushed the tears from her cheeks and turned to face the others.

“Doovari? Did he say Doovari?” Jack questioned.

“That’s what it sounded like to me,” Rose responded, standing up and gesturing for them to leave the room. “Do you know them?”

“Yes, in a way, though the alternate universe must have changed their fundamental biology.” Jack answered absently.

‘Jack! Clarify please!” the Doctor’s voice was aggravated. “They were a race that I didn’t have much contact with.”

“Knowing the Time Lords general avoidance of sexual situations, that doesn’t surprise me too much,” Jack replied. “In the other universe, the Doovari are generally a peaceful race but are hyper-sexual. Meaning they exude a form of xenon radiation that causes extreme sexual attraction. The radiation causes a release of sexual energy when it combines with the emotional empathy of sex. They then harvest sexual energy, store it, and use it to fuel their spaceships. They rarely hurt their victims, since shared pleasure for them is far more powerful than pain. The only real problem we had and the reason they were ultimately prohibited from several space stations in the 51st century is some humans could become addicted to them.”

“Sounds like your kind of alien, Jack. Are you sure you don’t have Doovari blood in you somewhere?” Rose joked her tongue between her teeth, before turning serious again. “I can see that though, if they were as potent as you say they were. Sexual addiction is something that happened even in the 21st century, so I can see that by the 51st century it could be a real problem for some.”

“Exactly.” Jack answered with a wink for her initial comment. “However, it seems that whatever the other version of the Doovari were, here they have gone from harvesting pleasure to harvesting anger and pain.”

“And since people don’t generally inflict or accept pain willingly, it makes sense that the collectors are projecting those emotions.”

“Weeeellll… they do, but that’s still more of a sexual aspect and probably not what the Doovari of this universe want,” the Doctor answered distractedly as two heads swiveled to look at him. “What?!?”

“The Doctor, the TARDIS, and BDSM. That’s a conversation I want to have. In fact, I am going to make sure to bring it back up when we have the time to discuss it.” Jack grinned before turning serious again. “But back to the subject at hand, at the Time Agency, we would often have to deal with the Doovari and to keep negotiations manageable; we used xenon particle blockers.”

“Well that explains a lot about my current xenon particle situation, but how does it relate to the situation we have?”

“Oh idiot!” the Doctor turned around in a circle his hands in his hair, “I should have thought of that!” Quickly he pulled out his 3D glasses, sonic’d them until they turned orange and blue, and looked around. “That’s it exactly – Rose you are brilliant!”

“Um... okay, but why this time?”

“You are covered in xenon particles. The Doovari must be harvesting denon particles.”

“Because, denon counteracts xenon and vice versa!” Jack finished, grinning.

“Not to be a buzz-kill, but how exactly in that info going to help us? Do we have anything that you can turn into a denon blocker?” Rose asked.

“No. Not with us, but on the zeppelin’s inventory list I saw several bio-dampeners. I can convert those,” The Doctor replied. “It would only delay us another couple of hours. We could go back grab them, and make our way back.”

“The Doovari know we are here now, do we have enough time?”

“I don’t know,” the words felt awkward on the Doctor’s lips, “It’s a risk. But I don’t know how Jack and I are going to react in their presence without something, especially after seeing the madness they caused in Officer Trent. We can try to maintain contact with you with your natural shielding, but if they manage to break that contact…”

“We could be in serious trouble,” Jack replied. He added with a grin and held out a closed fist. “Luckily, I grabbed these on the way out and tucked them into my pocket. I thought they might be useful, since they worked on the cat-clocks.” Jack opened his hand and revealed three metal rings.

“Bio-dampeners! Jack you are brilliant!” The Doctor snatched them out of Jack’s hands and placed a kiss on his cheek. Much to Rose’s amusement, Jack turned a paint shade of pink.

“You have three; do I really need one with the xenon particles naturally cancelling the denon particles?” Rose asked to give Jack a moment to compose himself.

“Probably not, but it won’t hurt to have the extra protection,” the Doctor replied as he pulled a pair of glasses out of his pocket, adjusted the settings on his screwdriver, and pointed it at the rings. With a satisfied smile, he pronounced, “Done! These should block 99% of any denon particles within five feet.” He slipped off his left glove and gestured for Rose and Jack to do the same. He slipped a ring on each of their fingers, before slipping one on himself. “There… I now pronounce us bio-damped.” Though his words were light-hearted and meant as an homage to something he once said to Donna, he couldn’t help feeling there was a deeper symbolism at work. When he had slipped the ring on his companions fingers, the crystal around his neck warmed and pulsed gently.

Rose quickly suppressed a flash of emotion when the Doctor slipped his ring on her finger then on Jack’s. The crystal at her neck grew warm and a set of images flashed through her mind. It happened too quickly for her to be able to really see them, but one stood out – the three of them standing in front of the frozen waves of Woman Wept, exchanging rings similar to the ones currently adorning their fingers. At the image, the emotion she had tried to suppress overwhelmed her and she stumbled back, her hand going to her forehead.

“Rose?!? Are you ok?” Jack saw the stumble and wondered if her reaction was for a similar reason as the one that he was currently using every shred of control he had to keep from showing. The three rings. The Doctor’s words. _I know he meant them as a joke to ease the tension of the mission… but I remembered the day Lucia and I were married. She was pregnant with my daughter, and I wanted to do the right thing. We lasted three years before she left and took Alice with her._ He quickly suppressed the pain of his last meeting with Alice. _I liked her and cared for her at the time but I didn’t love her. I thought that would be enough. I know now that I was just desperately seeking someone to end my loneliness. I hoped being a family could do that, that I could have ‘normal’. When she left she reminded me that my life will never be normal again. I realized at the Bar on Sto that I don’t really want normal… I want them. I need the Doctor and Rose on a level so deep I can’t really explain it, which is probably why I couldn’t make any relationships after my time with them work. Maybe it wasn’t meant to happen… I don’t know. All I know it that since that day on Game Station when the TARDIS gave Rose the power of the Time Vortex and turned her into Bad Wolf, she made me immortal… and forced the Doctor to choose between love and his past. When he chose to save Rose and absorb the Time Vortex, all three of us were bound by the same force. This Doctor. Our Doctor… grew from a part of that regeneration. His way of giving the rings back to us… It feels right in a way I haven’t felt since I kissed them goodbye on Game Station. I will fight to make this work and I will give each another ring in the future. I will marry them both._ The crystal at his neck pulsed gently against his skin.

“Rose?” the Doctor stepped over and slipped an arm around her waist. “What’s wrong?”

Rose took a deep breath and shook her head. Straightening, she said, “Sorry, I am fine. I just got hit with a series of images when you handed us the bio-dampeners. It was… unsettling.”

“What did you see?” Jack asked quietly, trying to convey his understanding of the emotional outburst.

“Something that may happen in the future, I think,” Rose answered and unconsciously twisted the ring on her left hand. “But it doesn’t matter now. We have to see this mission through.” Taking another breath she adopted her no-nonsense tone and stepped away from the Doctor. “The bio-dampeners are set and there is nothing we can do here. We should head back to the snowmobiles and find the location of the Doovari collective. I want to end this.”

The Doctor wanted to push the issue of the images she saw, but Jack caught his eye and shook his head slightly. _Fine. I will let it go for now._ Instead, he said, “All right. The location appeared to be about a mile or so ahead of us. Let’s go let the Doovari know the people of this Earth aren’t an energy source.” He put his gloves back on, pulled up his hood and balaclava and walked out the door.

Jack and Rose did the same. As Jack gestured for Rose to precede him out the door, he took one look back at the body of Officer Trent, barely visible in the shadows of the other room. _I will not let the Doovari of this Universe harm any more people._


	18. Chapter 18

Much to Jack’s relief the temperature didn’t drop any further the closer they got to the coordinates of the alien tech noted on their scanners. The Doctor had been correct in his estimation that the location was only a mile outside of the center of town, but the closer they got, the more discreet they needed to be, so it took them fifteen minutes to cover the distance that should only have taken them four or five at normal speed. Finally though, they pulled up in front of a boarded up warehouse. Getting off the snowmobiles, they were silent as they prepared to go into the building. Without conscious thought they slipped back into their old pattern of Jack in the lead, followed by the Doctor and Rose in the tail position. Once upon a time those positions had been to protect Rose, giving her the best chance at escape.   
  
The Doctor was acutely aware of how much that had changed. Of the three of them, he was the weakest shot and he knew it, having long abhorred carrying a weapon beyond his sonic screwdriver. _The days of Jack and I protecting Rose from all harm are over. Rassilion knows, more often than not, she is protecting me. I can’t hide behind my Time Lord superiority any more. I still have the brain but I don’t have the ability to regenerate and that means my priorities have shifted. Being half-human… weeeelll… being half-Donna has also given me a new perspective. I still prefer not to carry a blaster, but I am willing to use my stun-laser, especially if Rose or Jack is in trouble._   
  
Rose caught the Doctor’s eyes and smiled, guessing at some of his train of thought. With a wink, she said quietly, “Dontcha worry. Jack and I will protect you.”   
  
Grinning back, he replied just as quietly, “Right… But who is going to protect me from you and Jack?”   
  
“Shush!” Jack’s angry whisper made Rose and the Doctor look at each other with guilty grins before turning back to their surroundings. Stealthily, they slipped around to the back of the building until they came to a window where a board had pulled loose. Jack motioned to the doctor, who used his sonic screwdriver to loosen the rest of the nails, and they pulled off the rest of the boards as silently as they could. With his gloved fist he wiped a small circle in the grime covering the window and peered inside. He turned to the others, “It looks like an office of some sort. It’s empty but the door is open. I can see a faint glow down the hall towards the front of the building.”   
  
“Traps?” Rose asked.   
  
“None that I can see, but we won’t know for certain until we get in there. I don’t see any signs of Doovari either, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there.”   
  
“Ok,” the Doctor responded. “We need to get a better look and see if it is possible to shut whatever it is down.” He quickly sonic’d the lock on the window and slowly pushed it open. He then aimed his sonic screwdriver into the empty room and took some readings. “Recent signatures of alien life, nothing human. Either the workers closed shop for the winter and took off or they were disintegrated in town.”   
  
“Here’s hoping they just left town for the winter,” Rose said as she turned to Jack. “Give me a boost will ya?”   
  
“Rose, I should be the one to go in fir-,” Jack started to say before a gloved hand pressed against his lips followed by a chocolate eyed glare.   
  
“Jack,” Rose’s voice was calm, though it held the edge of annoyance. “Don’t try to coddle me. I am as equally good a shot as you, I am lighter, and I can get in and secure the room while you and the Doctor are still trying to climb through.”   
  
Jack saw the fire in her eyes. _She is right. I don’t like it. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t the better idea._ “Fine.” He muttered against the gloved fingers. He linked his fingers together and offered his cupped hands to her.   
  
Within a few heartbeats, Rose had slipped through the window and landed like a cat on the balls of her feet, barely making more than a whisper. Quickly she secured the room before turning and gesturing for them to join her. A few moments later, both the Doctor and Jack were behind her. Once again silent, Jack took point and started leading them down the hall towards the glow.   
  


********************

Jack could hear a thrumming that increased the closer that he got to the front of the building. It sounds like a Doovari engine. _They can’t have a ship inside the building… can they?_ The answer to his question soon came to light as he crept toward the open center of the building the roof having clearly been blasted off. _Dear gods… they do! The style is different from the Doovari of Earth – harsher and the heavy weaponry obviously means a battleship rather than a pleasure ship_. Jack took a step forward and crouched down behind some shelves before popping his head up and looking around. He noticed several large cylinders stacked against one wall. _Battery Packs?_ In the front of the building was a large machine with several tubes connecting it to the ship. A steady stream of a deep red glowing material seemed to be streaming in from a source on the roof. _There must be some sort of antenna to capture the beamed energy from the cat-clock collectors up there. It looks like that machine does the conversion from particle form in to a storable form._

The Doctor leaned in as close as he could to Jack’s ear, “They are converting the denon particle to denon radiation. That’s what is being stored in the tanks over there.”

“Duck!” Rose’s furiously whispered and two heads shrunk below the top of the shelf. Her blaster held tightly in a ready position as she tried to melt into the shadows of the wall she was leaning against. After a few moments, Rose cautiously peered back around the corner. She could see several Doovari walking toward the central machine. She could hear their mumbled conversation, but couldn’t understand any of the liquid language. The crystal pulsed once at her throat, and suddenly she could catch words in the conversation that she understood. Looking at the others, she saw the moment they realized they could understand what was being said. _Brilliant Ship, still translating for us even though she isn’t here with us._ The crystal pulsed again and Rose caught a faint emotion of annoyance. _Duh! She is here with us, that’s why she gave us the crystals, so she is always with us._ Rose grinned. _Sorry for doubting you, ol’ girl._

Quietly Rose moved to join Jack and the Doctor at the shelves. “What is our plan?”

“Yes. What is your plan exactly?” a cold masculine voice interrupted loudly as the three of them looked up to see themselves surrounded by five Doovari. They were tall and humanoid in shape, with pale blue skin, lithe muscular bodies, wide mouths, and large eyes. They appeared to be hairless, though the blue skin hardened into several rigid points at the back of their heads. Rose could easily see how in an alternate universe they were considered beautiful. However, her universe that beauty was edged in a look so cold and dismissive that it set her teeth on edge. “Did you really think three clumsy and loud humans could enter our location without us knowing?”

“Apparently not.” Summoning his famous grin, Jack said, “Hello, I am Capt. Jack Harkness. This is the Doctor and Ro-.”

“Sub-Commander Dakarshik, this is the human female that is immune to our devices,” one of the other Doovari interrupted, completely ignoring Jack. “The other two appear to have bio-dampeners which render denon particles inert. What would you like us to do with them?” She nudged her weapon at them and gestured for them to rise from their crouched positions. She motioned for one of the guards to remove the bio-dampening ring on Jack’s finger. The Doovari guard hissed in pain as his hand approached the metal band.

“Pity Doovari pain doesn’t have the same punch as human pain,” Dakarshik commented idly as the guard cradled his hand. “Remove their weapons, Lt. Talek, but leave them their bio-dampeners for the time being. We will bring them before the Commander Farjkidpindge. Their weapons are ineffective against our physiology, but we don’t want them getting ideas. The dampeners may cause us discomfort if we get to close but there are other methods of harvesting the power source we need. Ways that don’t require close contact.” The menace in the Sub-Commander’s voice sent a chill down Rose’s spine.

Turning briskly, Sub-Commander Dakarshik walked away without a glance back, leaving the rest of the Doovari to follow his direction. Lt. Talek spoke, flashing two rows of sharpened teeth in their direction, “Please fight our removal of your primitive weaponry. It will add to the energy already harvested and will make this so much sweeter.”

“Rose, Jack, don’t fight them,” the Doctor said carefully and handed over his screwdriver and stun laser. “She wasn’t kidding about it adding to the energy. This whole warehouse is one large receiver. The machine at the end is just the converter.”

Rose and Jack glanced at each other briefly, before doing as the Doctor suggested and handed over their blasters quietly. The guards then prompted them to start walking.

“Pity.” The Doovari answered as she led the way, “though your little Doctor is correct. Every emotion is you humans feel is captured by us. Your fear, your anger, your despair… it is such a sweet source of energy.” She licked her lips. “And it is so very easy to make you feel it over and over. Limitless resource.”

She halted the group in front of the space ship. Without warning, the guards roughly separated Rose, Jack, and the Doctor from each other into a loose triangle and held them in place while an energy shield wrapped around them.

Immediately, all three poked at the shield and all three jumped as a current of electrical energy shot through them.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” A melodious voice called from the shadows before stepping out. The immediate bowing of the guards, told Rose, Jack, and the Doctor that this was the Commander Farjkidpindge. “Unless, of course, you wish to surrender and offer yourself for energy harvesting.”

“Commander Farjkidpindge, I am Rose Tyler. My partners are the Doctor and Capt. Jack Harkness. We represent the Torchwood entity. We are the protectors of this planet. Your action to subjugate the people of Earth is a direct violation of Statutes 42637 - 42658 of the Shadow Proclamation. If you cease your activities and leave the planet immediately, we will consider the matter a misunderstanding and no harm will come to you or your people. Should you continue on this course of action, we will remove you and your people forcibly from our planet and you will be brought up on charges in the Great Court. What is your decision?” Rose’s voice held authority and her body language was confident and secure.

_Wow. Rose is impressive_. Jack glanced over at the Doctor who wore a knowing smirk as he read Jack’s expression. _How many times has she done this?_

Commander Farjkidpindge responded to Rose’s ultimatum with a laugh. “You amuse me. You obviously are aware of Shadow Proclamation regulations, which I will do you the courtesy of saying does impress me, and Earth may, in fact, be in petition to become a member of the Shadow Proclamation but as it currently lacks a single ship with subspace capabilities, it cannot be a member and therefore it is not subject to its Statutes. This means that you are on your own… and at our mercy.”

This time the Doctor spoke. “Commander Farjkidpindge. You are correct in that the Earth has not yet become a full member of the Shadow Proclamation, but that will soon be rectified, as a ship capable of subspace travel is currently being built. You would show honor and good faith by your retreat now. As Rose Tyler stated, the Earth will not retaliate or bring charges against you. This however, is your last warning. If you do not leave immediately, the consequences will be on your head.”

The entire Doovari contingent started laughing.

“Why don’t they ever listen?” Jack said with a sigh. His voice held notes of casualness, as if being held in an energy field was no more than a minor irritation. “So much trouble could be averted if they just listened.”

“It never ceases to amaze me how bloody dense some species are,” The Doctor replied with the same casual arrogance. “Sycorax, Dalek, Cybermen, Jagrafess, Racnoss… all so certain of their superiority – all defeated by a bunch of apes. You would think that by now the reputation of the Earth as something to be avoided would be established.”

Rose finished, “The Shadow Proclamation Council obviously agrees with us, otherwise we wouldn’t be on their radar at such a young age for our species. But unfortunately Jack is right – They don’t listen.”

“We listen when there is something worth listening to,” Commander Farjkidpindge interrupted heatedly. “Your pitiful ploy of indifference will not convince us to abandon such a rich source of energy. There will be no repercussions from the Council as your planet is not yet a member. We are free to act as we choose.” His black eyes glittered dangerously. He held out his hand and an object was placed in it. A cruel smile crossed his lips, “and now... it is time to harvest energy from you.” He flicked a button on the object in his hand and a long energy whip burst into life. It sizzled and crackled as he approached the three of them. “Who to choose? Which one of you will cause the most agony in the others to watch?”

Unconsciously Jack and the Doctor glanced at each other before looking at Rose. She turned and looked at each of them, giving them both a small head shake.

“Ahhh… the female then,” Commander Farjkidpindge’s whip cracked out, slid through the stasis field and wrapped around Rose’s waist.

An involuntary cry slipped from Rose’s mouth as electricity coursed through her.

“ROSE!!!” The Doctor and Jack cried out together in horror and despair as they watched the woman they both loved be caught in wraps of an energy whip.

Commander Farjkidpindge laughed evilly as he twisted his wrist and the wraps of the energy whip released her. He watched with pleasure as she dropped to one knee her breath gasping, before looking toward the collector. “Oh… the energy you give off, Rose Tyler. Exquisite. It almost matches the energy from your partners as they watched your pain. Excellent. We could fuel the ship on the energy from the three of you alone.”

Rose knelt still gasping. The pain and heat that had coursed through her body was relentless, but she had been subject to worse. _Lock it down, Rose Tyler._

“Rose!” The Doctor’s voice was on the edge of panic as he watched her shakily stand back up. Determination shone in her eyes.

“Such brave little female,” Commander Farjkidpindge purred. “Do you want more?”

Rose stared back defiantly.

“No! Let her go!” Jack screamed uselessly. “Take me!”

“My, your partner is eager for his turn, isn’t he?”

Rose said calmly, “You have acted against the Statutes of the Shadow Proclamation of which your race is a member. You have violated the Treaty of Sentient species. The lives of you and your crew are forfeit.” Flecks of gold appeared in her brown eyes.

“My crew will be regarded as heroes by my species for finding such a rich source of energy.” Commander Farjkidpindge twisted his wrist to throw another lash at Rose.

“Doctor! Jack! LOCK IT DOWN!!” Rose screamed as the next lash wrapped around her waist again. This time, Rose was able to control the pain and push it away from her. She took a step forward, the whip still wrapped around her waist.

Jack heard her words and the conversation they had a few days prior coursed through his head. _Rose is right. They grow stronger with our negative emotions. Lock down the emotions. Lock down the pain._

The Doctor was struggling. His time lord self knew all about locking away emotions, but his human half was having a harder time. _I just learned how to show my emotions. How do I stop now?_ He looked up in time to see the 2nd lash and his heart leapt in fear again. It relaxed fractionally as he saw that appeared to have less of an impact on Rose. The crystal pulsed at his throat. _Remember… Time Lord_. Digging back through his memories, he found the key and promptly turned it. The overwhelming tide of emotion condensed to a trickle.

“What is this?” Commander Farjkidpindge snarled and threw another lash.

This time Rose barely acknowledged the pain. She started walking slowly, her eyes locked to the Commander’s, gold flecks starting to glow. She held up a hand and pushed her way through the energy field around her. She reached down to the grab the center of the whip and pulled hard. The suddenness of the movement jerked it out of the Commander’s hand. As it clattered to the floor, the tail of the whip disappeared.

As if Rose’s actions had been a catalyst, Jack pushed through the energy field holding him a moment later, followed immediately by the Doctor who rubbed his arms unconsciously. Both went immediately to Rose’s side, each taking a hand.

“What IS this?” Commander Farjkidpindge screamed. “Sub-Commander, Guards, contain the prisoners!”

At the touch of Jack and the Doctor’s hands in hers, Rose felt warmth spread through her body. Skin to skin, she felt the xenon particles spread around them both. As long as they remained connected, the particles acted as if the Doctor and Jack were part of her body. _Xenon counteracts their denon radiation. They can’t touch us._

Rose’s thought was immediately obvious as the Doovari who rushed forward at their Commander’s command, stumbled back, screaming in pain.

“They can’t touch us.” Jack said in wonder.

“Rose’s xenon particles must be acting as a secondary buffer. The bio-dampeners alone didn’t cause this much pain.”

“I have an idea. If we get our rings off we can use them as a containment field around the Doovari.”

“Don’t break the skin to skin contact,” Rose warned squeezing each of their hands. “As long as we are touching the particles are acting like you are an extension of my hands. If you break that now, it may not recognize you again.”

“All right then,” Jack reached around with his free hand and pulled a length of his shirt out. He brought the hand that was linked with hers to it.

Understanding what he was doing, Rose slipped her hand out of his and slid it across the naked skin of his back. A different kind of electricity sizzled across her fingers and she bit back a gasp. From the tensed muscles, she could tell Jack felt it as well.

“Remind me to have you do that again, when we aren’t trying to save the world,” Jack murmured, tossing her a cheeky grin. Within moments he had slipped the bio-dampener off his finger and held it ready. “Doc, it’s your turn.”

With a grin nearly as cheeky as Jack’s, the Doctor quickly did the same motion, a chuckle erupting from him as the expression on her face told him without words, that she felt the same tingle he did when her hand made contact with his lower back. “Jack’s right. Definitely need to have you do that again.” His wink made her laugh.

“We will talk about it when we get back to Cardiff,” Rose grinned, tongue touching her teeth. “Now, since I am effectively helpless unless I let go of you both, I would suggest that whatever you two have planned we do it soon.”

“Right,” The Doctor responded, “Shall we try to herd them to the back wall?”

“Sounds like a plan to me, Doctor,” Jack answered. As one they moved forward, Jack picking up the discarded energy whip as they went. For each step forward they took, the Doovari took one step back, hissing in pain at each step. Within moments, the Doovari were backed into a corner. Jack and the Doctor tossed their bio-dampeners onto the floor in front of them, creating a wall of denon blocking energy.

“You fools, why aren’t you rushing them? Forget the pain – We are Doovari and we will conquer this planet!” Commander Farjkidpindge yelled. He started to run towards the trio, but Jack hit the button on the energy whip and looped it around him. The Commander dropped to the floor, screaming, as the energy coursing through the whip caused him to disintegrate.

“What the…?” Jack asked.

“Let me see it,” the Doctor replied and Jack tossed him the now inert handle. “The fool. The energy in the whip must be xenon based, which is why it reacted so strongly to the denon radiation in him.”

“And it would also explain why it was so easy for me to lock down the pain from it,” Rose responded. “But why would he use it, if he knew it was deadly to his race?”

“Best way to keep the troops in line,” Jack responded. “He obviously didn’t realize how heavily covered in xenon particles you are. One lash would have disintegrated a normal human, which is probably what happened to the townsfolk.”

“It’s a good thing he went for me first then,” Rose responded, her hands unconsciously stroking up their backs. “So what do we do know?”

“Umm… if you don’t stop caressing my back like that I can tell you what we WILL be doing is very different than what we SHOULD be doing,” Jack said through gritted teeth.

“Oh Sorry!” Rose said sheepishly. “I guess I could let go of both of you now. The others are captured and helpless… for the moment anyway.”

The Doctor couldn’t resist a soft sigh as Rose’s hand left his back. _Definitely something I want to do again._ Stepping forward, he addressed the Doovari. “Sub-Commander Dakarshik, your attempt to subjugate the Earth has failed. Will you continue in your former Commander’s footsteps and face the same fate, or will you take the rest of your crew, leave this planet in peace, and never return?”

The Sub-Commanders response was an incoherent scream as he rushed towards the Doctor, Jack, and Rose. With no little disdain, Jack quickly flicked the whip back on and lashed out – the Sub-Commander falling to ash next to his former Commander. Jack said in a voice devoid of mercy, “Trust me, I can do this all day.”

“Wait!” Lt. Talek stepped out in front of the others. “I will take the others and leave. You can have this primitive planet.”

“Good choice,” Rose said and slipped a hand into a pocket on her pants. Pulling out a mini comm unit, she pressed a few buttons.

“Torchwood Air One Captain Charles Smith, here. Ms. Tyler, have you need of our assistance?”

“Thank you for your prompt response, Captain Smith. We have neutralized several Doovari. They have agreed to leave the planet if we would spare the rest of the crew.” Rose glanced behind her and saw the Doctor grinning as he picked up his sonic screwdriver and tucked it into his pocket. Jack had already pocketed his blaster and was patiently waiting to return hers to her. At her nod, they both stepped into the Doovari spaceship, Jack walking over to her and slipping it into the small of her back with a wink, first. “We are going to temporarily disable their weapons systems before they leave. However, if by chance they manage to regain control and attempt to fire them at this location or anywhere on the planet; your duty is to shoot them down. First Officer Smith – you will need to reconfigure the lasers to emit xenon particles as it will penetrate their shields and disable their ship.”

“Acknowledged, Ms. Tyler,” Richard Smith’s voice confirmed.

“The Doovari will be leaving in T-minus twenty,” Rose stated, looking at her watch.

“T-minus twenty confirmed, Torchwood Air One over and out.”

“You will leave us weaponless in deep space?” Lt. Talek snarled.

“It would be no more than you deserve for attacking our race, but we are not as cruel as the Doovari. If I know the Doctor, your weapons will only remain offline until you have exited this solar system. They should become fully operational at that time. Before you get any bright ideas, though, if I know Jack he will have found a way to make them ineffective if you decide to return to this solar system. This is our final warning. If you return with hostile intentions, you will be immediately destroyed.”

“We will not return.” Lt. Talek said with hatred in her voice.

********************

Twenty minutes later, the remaining Doovari boarded their ship and left the Earth. Breathing a sigh of relief, Jack watched as their ship disappeared into the atmosphere. “Threat number one officially closed. Except for the paperwork part.” He smiled as he heard the Doctor groan.

“Paperwork. That’s the one thing I just can’t get used to. Fly in – save the day, swoop out. So much easier,” the Doctor grumbled good-naturedly.

“Threat one ALMOST officially closed,” Rose corrected staring at the large machine still harvesting emotions in the corner. “We still need to do something about that.”

“Can we reverse the process?” Jack asked.

“We could,” the Doctor hedged, “but do we really want to send all the anger, despair and hatred back to the ones it was harvested from?”

“What about just shutting it down?”

“Won’t work. It needs a command sent back along the link and it only recognizes emotional energy as the delivery method.”

The crystal pulsed at Rose’s throat and the image of her dancing with Jack and the Doctor slid into her mind. _Dancing Rose? You were doing a hell of a lot more than dancing there at the end_. Rose let herself remember the feel of Jack’s lips on hers and the Doctor’s on her neck. She let the rest of the memory play out and watched the moment when the TARDIS fed on the sexual energy they had created. _There’s an idea…_

“I think I have the solution. The TARDIS just reminded me of the night we were dancing. She fed off the energy, remember. Can we reconfigure this machine to send back a shut off sequence and use those emotions as the delivery method?” Rose asked.

“Rose, you’re brilliant!” The Doctor said excitedly and ran over to the machine to start the reconfigure process.

Jack grinned at her, “So instead of anger and despair, we are flooding the world with sexual tension.”

“At least it’s easier to get rid of,” Rose answered with an equally cheeky grin before sauntering over to the machine, making sure she put a little bit more sway in her hips, since she knew Jack would be watching her.

_Minx. I will make you follow through on that hint._ Jack grinned before joining them both at the converter.

Within moments, both were following directions the Doctor barked out at them. Fifteen minutes later, the Doctor stepped back, satisfied. “Done. Now all we need is a bit of energy for the delivery method and we hit this button.” He gestured to a pulsing button before pulling Rose into his arms with a smirk and kissing her thoroughly. Jack, not to be outdone, slipped up behind her and started nibbling on her neck, working his way up to her earlobe and biting gently. Her gasp broke the hold the Doctor’s lips had on hers and quickly Jack captured them instead.

The Doctor’s eyes were locked on the sight of Jack and Rose kissing, but his hand had a mind of its own. It slipped around Rose’s waist and under the still un-tucked bit of Jack’s shirt, to caress the skin of his lower back. Jack’s groan was a well-deserved reward as Jack’s hands grabbed the Doctor and pulled him closer into both of them.

Rose was hanging on to her sanity by a thread. The groan slipping from Jack’s lips only making the thread thinner. Forcing herself to open her eyes, she could see the energy from the collector glow a crystalline blue instead of the angry red it had been earlier. Stretching out her fingers, she pushed the button, just as her attention was caught by the Doctor claiming Jack’s lips. _Damn… that’s unbelievably hot. The Doctor and Jack. I want to see more of that!_

As soon as the button was pressed, the machine rumbled and bucked, sending Rose, Jack and the Doctor flying partway across the room.

Sitting up, they started laughing and were about to reach for each other again when something caught Jack’s eye. “The collector is overloading and is going to blow! We have to get out of here! Run!”

Quickly, the Doctor and Rose were on their feet and sprinting to the back of the warehouse. Seeing the door was boarded shut, Rose pulled out her blaster, took aim as she ran and blew a hole in the wood. Jack whooped in approval as the three of them burst out of the warehouse into the now warming afternoon.

“I hate to say it, but we still aren’t clear,” the Doctor said. “That machine has a fuel cell that will create a blast half a mile wide.” He held out his sonic screwdriver then swore at the readings. “We have five minutes until it goes critical.”

“Good thing we have the snowmobiles, then, huh?” Rose laughed as she quickly threw her leg over one. “Let’s get out of here!”

The three of them started the engines and rushed off, pushing the snowmobiles to their limits, now that they no longer had to worry about trying to be stealthy. Their haste paid off - five minutes later they were back through the town and crossing the frozen lake, when a boom behind them, made them stop and look back.

Rose was prepared to see the cloud of debris that mushroomed up from the site of the former warehouse. She was not, however, prepared for the shockwave that rumbled across the ground. With a sickening crack, the ice beneath her snowmobile cracked open, and she fell into the bone chillingly frigid waters of the lake below.


	19. Chapter 19

The Doctor and Jack had been slightly slower to stop their snowmobiles when they heard the boom of the collector going critical, so they were several yards ahead of Rose when they felt the shockwave. However, they heard the crack of the ice the same moment that Rose did and they could only watch in horror as she fell into the frigid waters.   
  
“ROSE!!” they both screamed simultaneously and started running to the newly formed hole in the ice. As they frantically tried to read her, Jack heard the ice creak below their feet ominously. He grabbed the Doctor’s arm and skidded them both to a stop.   
  
“Jack! What are you doing? We have to get Rose!” He tried to run again, but Jack held him fast.   
  
“Doctor, listen. The ice won’t hold us both and we can’t help her if we are both trapped as well. We need a plan. Hypothermia won’t kill me, but it may kill you. I will go in after her, but I need you to pull us out.”   
  
The control in Jack’s voice snapped the human emotion aside and the Time Lord took over. “There’s a tow rope on the snowmobile. Take the end with you so you don’t get lost under the ice.” The Doctor was running back to the snowmobile as he was speaking and it was only a matter of heartbeats before he was back with the rope.   
  
Jack had stripped out of his bulky jacket and boots, which would only get waterlogged and pull him down. Clad only in his thermal and snow pants, he gave the Doctor a hard quick kiss and said, “I’ll find her. I promise.” He took off at a run and dove into the hole - one end of the rope wrapped securely around his wrist.   
  


********************

The instant the icy waters touched Rose, her survival training kicked in. Thankfully she had managed to get a deep breath before the water closed above her head. Once she was submerged, she kicked free of the snowmobile and started trying to take off her jacket before the weight of it became too much. The water was so cold it had completely and instantly numbed her fingers, so it was far more difficult a task than she anticipated. _Remove Jacket. Remove Boots. Find a crack in the ice. Follow a bubble to find the surface. Keep alive until the Doctor and Jack can find me._ Rose ran the litany over and over in her head. Finally, she had her boots and jacket off and let loose the breath she had been holding, watching which way they moved. She started kicking toward the surface, but her hand met only a solid sheet of ice. Trusting in instinct, she felt a small crack and followed it until it grew wider. She started seeing pinpricks of blackness close over her vision, but she stubbornly refused to give in. She punched at the ice frantically and felt a piece about the size of her chin give way. With the last of her reserves, she angled her neck and was able to take a breath. Oxygen flooded back into her body with a burning sensation, but she ignored it, focusing instead on trying to widen the hole enough to let her head come up. _The Doctor and Jack will find me. The Doctor and Jack will find me_. Around her neck, the crystal started glowing. Rose used its warmth to center her focus and continued to working on enlarging the hole even as the cold water stole the warmth from her limbs in painful pinpoints of pain.

*******************

The minute the icy waters closed over Jack, he lost all sense of direction. Keeping his eyes open in the water wasn’t difficult, but the murkiness of the water meant there wasn’t much visibility. _Come on, Rose. Which way did you go? Give me something… Please!_ The crystal at his throat pulsed and warmed. Jack grabbed it, knowing the TARDIS was trying to help. He felt a push in a direction off to his left and immediately started swimming. After a few yards he could see a light in the water and he realized that it was Rose’s crystal. Kicking hard he closed the distance and felt a wave of relief crash over him as he touched Rose’s hip.

When Rose felt something touch her hip and looked down from her attempts to widen the hole to see the face of her best friend staring back at her, she could have cried. _He found me._

Jack held up the end of the rope and started to wrap it around her, while she gestured to the hole above. Understanding passed between them and both took another deep breath before Jack started swimming back the way he came, using the rope to guide them to the hole where Rose had originally fallen through.

********************

The Doctor watched Jack disappear beneath the surface and for the first time felt completely helpless. _Jack’s right. I can’t go after them. I just have to trust that they will make it back to me. They HAVE to make it back to me._ The crystal around his neck pulsed chidingly. _Ok. Push the worry aside. Jack will find her. I need to be able to get them out quickly when he returns._ The Doctor spurred into action. He grabbed the opposite end of the rope and tied it to his snowmobile. He then started pulling in the slack until it was gone. _I have Jack. Is Rose with him?_ Holding his break, he waited to see which way the rope would move… and let it out with a cry of triumph as it went slack again. _They are coming back this way. He has her._ The Doctor’s thoughts narrowed into steadily pulling the rope, easing the burden on Jack and getting him closer to the hole, the only way he could.

After what seemed like forever, Jack and Rose popped up through the hole, gasping for breath. As soon as he had enough breath, Jack screamed, “Doctor get us out of here!”

The Doctor was ready, yelling back he said, “Hold tight to the rope. I am pulling you both out.” He jumped on the snowmobile and slowly started forward, letting the horsepower of the machine work in his favor to pull them out far more quickly than he could have done by hand. As soon as they were free and on a patch of ice solid enough to support all their weight, the Doctor jumped off the snowmobile and ran back to them.

Jack held Rose in his arms, but the grave look on his face told the Doctor immediately that she was in trouble. He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and scanned her, though he was pretty sure he knew exactly what was wrong.

“She’s in shock and her body is shutting down from the cold. We have to get her into shelter and warm in the next few minutes or we may lose her.” The Doctor said tonelessly.

“We are still several miles from the zeppelin and the town. She can’t handle a long snowmobile ride in her wet clothes. We can try to get to the shore and build a snow shelter. It may be our only option.” Jack said the tension in his voice. “Come on.”

**_There is another option._ **

A voice clearly spoke in the Doctor’s head and from the look on Jack’s face, he heard it too. “What option. Who are you?” A hope wiggled its way into the Doctor’s grimness even as he tried to squash it.

**_This option. Shame on you my Doctor for not recognizing me. Your human half knows me but your Time Lord arrogance and cynicism continues to lead._ **

“The TARDIS…” Jack said reverently.

**_Yes, my Captain._ **

“Can you come get us?” Jack asked eagerly as he watched the struggle of emotions on the Doctor’s face at her chastisement.

**_Alas, I am still not complete. I cannot come to you… but as you have a part of me. I can bring you to me._ **

“Brilliant ship. Beautiful, brilliant, amazing ship…” The Doctor grinned as he saw a white light envelope the three of them, “… the most perfect ship in all the universes!”

**_Don’t you ever forget it, my Doctor!_ **

The cheekiness of the response made Jack laugh even as he continued to hold Rose’s limp body in his arms. He formed the question in his mind, “Are we going to be able to save Rose?”

**_My Wolf is fading fast, she cannot hold out much longer. This is why I am intervening even though I am not complete. Like you both, I refuse to lose her._** The TARDIS’s voice grew faint and both Jack and the Doctor could feel how much energy she was using to pull them through space. **_Save her… my Doctor, my Captain… Save my Wolf._**

The three of them materialized in the flat in Cardiff. Immediately Jack set Rose on his bed and walked over to the fireplace. Gathering wood and kindling he set about starting a fire. _I have to get her warm. A fire will help. I WON’T lose her._

The Doctor watched as Jack set Rose on the bed and left her there to focus single-mindedly on the fireplace. _He is forgetting there is a better way._ A small sound from Rose’s lips turned him back to her. Within moments he removed all of Rose’s wet clothing, and maneuvered her under the blankets. He immediately undressed completely as well and crawled in next to her, wrapping her ice cold body against his.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief as the kindling lit and a merry blaze started in the grate. _Ok. Fire is done. We need to get her into some blankets._ Jack started to stand up when he heard the Doctor’s exasperated voice behind him.

“Quit fussing with the fire, Jack and get in here. She needs your body heat more than that fire at the moment.”

Jack felt gob smacked. _Body Heat. DUH!_ He was tempted to smack himself on the forehead, but instead turned the motion into the swift removal of his still wet clothing.

“Took you long enough,” The Doctor said with a small smile, worry at Rose’s still barely responsive condition evident.

“Is she going to be ok?” Jack asked quietly as he slipped his naked body behind hers and spooned with her against the Doctor’s chest.

“We will have to see.”

*******************

Rose was drifting in and out of a dream. She was standing naked in the middle of a frozen wasteland. She knew that she had to escape but she didn’t know where to go. She just knew that there was something she needed to find. No... There were people that she needed to find. Two people. Two people that would save her, that she would protect, that would be a family. As soon as she had the though, she could see a warm golden light appear in the distance. She knew she had to get to that light. It was where the others were – a lean man with a shock of crazy brown hair, eyes that had seen forever, mind brilliant beyond reason, and a heart that had seen pain beyond measure and still searched for the truth of love. The other man – body of a fallen angel with a smile to match, ageless blue eyes that would see eternity, a cynic turned believer, a wastrel turned protector, fierce, determined, and desperately seeking a love that could span eons. She was the bridge between them and they each were her bridge to the other. Rose shook her head. There was something else in the light… a piece of her soul. Home. It needed her as much as she needed it.

As if the word had lit the ember inside, she started walking across the plain towards the light. The wind howled across the land and whipped her body with its icy tendrils. The pain became constant. Each step was a thousand needles attacking her body, but she kept moving… her gaze focused on the light which came fractionally closer with each step. For hours _(minutes, eternity)_ she pressed on until the light was only a few steps away. With a cry of relief she tried to take the next step, which turned to horror as she discovered she couldn’t. Her feet had turned to ice and were frozen to the ground. She reached out and watched as her hands turned to ice. Inexorably the ice spread up her arms… up her legs. She knew without knowing how, that if the ice were to reach her heart, it would be over. She would never be warm again. A cry of despair clawed its way out of her throat as tears of ice formed on her cheeks.

A shadow crossed in front of the light and a form appeared. Without hesitation it walked toward her. It was her lean brilliant Doctor and he was as naked as she. Without a word he slipped his hands over her ice covered ones, melting them with the heat of his body and the look in his eyes as he pressed closer to the front of her body. Not more than a couple of heartbeats behind him, another bare form crossed the light and resolved itself into her Captain. He walked up behind her and pressed the length of his body against her back, his hands on her hips melting the ice that held her legs in stasis.

Together they held her as their combined body warmth melted first the ice, then the pain, and finally any lingering traces of cold. When she was finally and completely warm, they each took one of her hands and led her into the light.

_I am home, at last._

********************

“S’ warmm…,” the mumbled words could quite possibly be the sweetest thing that either the Doctor or Jack had ever heard. Instinctively their arms tightened around her as their eyes met – joy shining out of each pair.

The Doctor leaned down and kissed her forehead. “She is going to be fine. You saved her, Jack.” The Doctor slid one of the arms he had around Rose over to grip Jack’s forearm.

“WE saved her, Doctor,” Jack responded and linked his fingers with the Doctor’s. “We couldn’t have gotten out of the water without you. Rose wasn’t the only one whose body was starting to shut down. I would have revived, of course, but it wouldn’t have been until spring thaw.”

“We do make a good team, don’t we?” the Doctor grinned as Jack laid a kiss on the knuckles of their entwined fingers.

“Yes we do,” Jack grinned, “Now all we have to do is convince Sleeping Beauty here…”

“One princess, two princes?” the Doctor laughed, “Unless of course you want to be a princess too?”

Jack threw his head back and laughed. “Not that I couldn’t totally rock a ball gown… but it’s not really my style.”

“Pity.”

Jack saw a light in the Doctor’s eyes at his comment that he wasn’t quite sure how to interpret. He was about to ask for more clarification, but Rose wiggled in his arms and stretched, which promptly caused him to forget about anything but her naked body pressed into his. The blood rushed into a certain part of his anatomy, hardening it in an instant. He tried to hide a groan as Rose continued to wiggle as she found a comfortable spot still 99% asleep.

The Doctor looked at him in sympathy, as Rose’s movements had caused a similar reaction in him. “This is going to be hard.”

“Going to be? It’s already a bloody steel post,” Jack grumbled and shifted slightly.

The rumble of voices is what had woken Rose in the first place. Her mind was still floating in the blissful state from her dream and she stretched and snuggled quite happily into two naked, firm and very male bodies. _Two erect male bodies… Feels so good… Wait! NAKED. ME. DOCTOR. JACK… ERECT…OH!…_ Suddenly wide awake, she opened her eyes to see two sets of gorgeous eyes staring down at her. She squeaked, “Umm… Hi?”


	20. Chapter 20

“Hi,” Jack smiled at the faint flush on Rose’s cheeks.  
  
“Hello, love,” the Doctor did the same.  
  
“Hello…” Rose said again, only this time the flush swept completely over her body when her instinctual movement reminded her that she was naked and pressed between them. Struggling to find something to say that didn’t make her sound like a babbling idiot, Rose glanced around. When she realized that they were in Jack’s bedroom, her natural curiosity perked up. “How did we get back to Cardiff? I remember falling through the ice in Scotland, Jack finding me under the water and guiding me back, but I don’t remember anything else. How long have I been out?”  
  
Jack saw her need to process through the situation logically, so despite the aching in a certain area of his body, he answered her questions rather than crushing her naked body under his. “It’s only been a couple of hours since you fell through the ice. You are right – I dove in after you and the Doctor was able to pull us out. Your body went into hypothermic shock and started shutting down. We were still too far from the zeppelin to make it back there before you slipped away.”  
  
“If we were too far from the zeppelin, how did we get back to Cardiff?"  
  
“The TARDIS,” the Doctor picked up the story. “Our favorite brilliant ship was able to pull us to her, because we were wearing the crystals she gave us. Once we were here, we knew body heat would be the fastest way to bring back up your core temperature.”  
  
Rose reached up and fingered the crystal around her neck. It emitted a soft warm pulse, like a purring kitten. _Thank You, my girl_. Rose silently said to the ship while broadcasting the feeling of gratitude and love. She laughed when the response back was a clear feeling of ‘You’re Welcome’ followed by a series of images of her, Jack , and the Doctor, doing naughty things to each other. Overlaid on the images was an emotion - impatience. There was no doubt in Rose’s mind that the TARDIS was trying to say ‘What are you WAITING for?!?”  
  
Rose realized that both the Doctor and Jack were waiting on her response, slightly puzzled by her laughter. Gripping the pendant tightly for moral strength, she responded to the inquiry in her Doctor’s eyes. “Sorry. I was thanking the TARDIS and her response was to send back impatient images.”  
  
“She didn’t speak directly into your mind?” the Doctor’s puzzled words, made Jack realize there was something significant in the question.  
  
Silently, Jack sent the question to the ship. “Can you hear me?”  
  
 ** _Yes, my Captain. Now why aren’t you doing something about claiming my Wolf?_**  
  
“Working on it,” Jack sent back telepathically with a mental grin before turning back to the Doctor’s question and the answer from Rose.  
  
“No,” Rose answered. “Should she have? I always get images and emotions from her, never direct words. Is she speaking directly to you?” There was a hint of hurt in Rose’s tone.  
  
“Aha! The xenon has made you empathic rather than telepathic,” the Doctor replied with a grin, “makes far more sense really, since you were much more sensitive to the emotive output of the Doovari.”  
  
“So both of you can actually hear what the TARDIS is saying? You don’t just get images?” The hurt grew stronger in her voice.  
  
The Doctor saw it and quickly pressed a kiss to her temple. “Yes we both hear her words, but you hear her heart. My guess is with a bit of training, you will be able to read the emotions of anyone you choose to, since humans are highly emotive creatures, while Jack and I can only hear the thoughts of those with high Psi ratings.” This time the TARDIS made the impatient comment about the delay in seduction to him. He grimaced. “Trust me, it may be more of a blessing that you can’t actually hear what she is saying.”  
  
Rose’s curiosity overtook her self-pity. “Why is that?”  
  
“Because she is VERY vocal about what she wants,” Jack replied with a fond but exasperated look toward the door. He shouted to the other room, “We will work on that in a moment. Don’t you think your Wolf deserves some answers before we unleash our unbridled lust on her poor unsuspecting self?”  
  
Jack’s comment had the desired effect that he was hoping for. Rose burst out laughing, “Unbridled lust, huh?”  
  
He gave her his best Jack Harkness grin and let all of his desire for her shine through his eyes and sing in his mind, knowing she would pick up on it. “You know it.”  
  
Rose caught her lip between her teeth as she felt the wave of Jack’s emotion roll over her.  
  
The Doctor leaned in and whispered, “We want you. BOTH of us want YOU. We have wanted you for years and we both buried the feeling. There isn’t any reason to hide it anymore. We are bound to each other and to the TARDIS. Personally, I am tired of fighting against myself. I know being with both you and Jack is the right thing… but only if you want us both as well.”  
  
The hesitant insecurity in his voice, pulled at her heart. Without thinking, she caught his lips with hers and kissed him before saying, “I love you, my Doctor. I think I have loved you from the moment you grabbed my hand and said ‘Run’. I have never stopped.” She turned and kissed Jack, “You my darling crazy Captain, you made my heart flutter the moment you caught me. Before I realized it, you became my best friend, but in my heart you were so much more. I tried to hide it, even from myself, because I never thought I could have both – my Doctor and my Captain. I don’t want to hide anymore. I have seen so many images of the three of us together… I want you both. I want to spend the rest of my life with both of you – exploring new worlds and what we can become together.”  
  
“Good answer,” Jack breathed against her lips before his mouth came crashing down on hers, his hand knotting in her hair, gripping tightly as he swallowed her gasp and proceeded to plunder her mouth with his tongue. His other hand slid down her shoulder to caress her left breast. The Doctor’s mouth came down on her neck, biting hard then more gently as he worked his way up and down it. His fingers rubbing circles around her right nipple, his other hand sliding across her body to rest on Jack’s hip.  
  
Rose was lost in the sensations. Their combined heat and the emotion wrapped around her mind and heart. _This is what I have wanted for so long_. That was the last coherent thought that flitted through her mind before she just let the passion she felt consume her.  
  
The Doctor continued his exploration of Rose’s neck, before gently biting and kissing his way down her chest. Her body started wiggling as his breath tickled against her skin and he discovered her most sensitive areas. _Wriggle away my Rose, I love that you move for me even while you are caught by Jack’s mouth._ Still teasing her skin with his lips and teeth, the Doctor replaced his hand on her breast with his mouth and bit gently, laving the nipple with his tongue. He watched as her reaction ripped up her body and she broke from Jack’s kiss with a cry followed immediately by a low moan.  
  
Jack was momentarily distracted by her reaction and the breaking of her kiss, but as he saw the Doctor’s mouth latched onto Rose’s breast, he immediately knew what caused it. Smiling wickedly, he reclaimed her lips as he slid his hand down from the breast he had been caressing to the smooth mound with the small thatch of hair at the joint of her legs. Gently he teased his fingers over the super sensitive clit and down into the warm wetness waiting for him. He swallowed her deeper moan this time with his kiss as his fingers slowly worked their way in and out of her pussy.  
  
The Doctor continued his exploration of Rose’s breasts. Then making sure that both had received equal attention, he kissed his way down her stomach, working his way down to Jack’s fingers. Slowly he started licking her clit, and then lower to tease around Jack’s fingers as they slid in and out of her, glancing up quickly to make sure that the Jack was enjoying it as well, before working his way back to her sweet spot. Pleased at the gasp Jack had made when his tongue teased across Jack’s fingers, he continued with that slow dance. Clit, Folds, Fingers, then back again.  
  
Feeling Rose’s body starting to buck underneath him, Jack pulled back from her lips and started nuzzling down her neck. “Cum for us, love,” his voice was a command, not a request.  
  
The Doctor heard Jack’s command and felt Rose’s reaction as her orgasm pulsed through her clit and over Jack’s fingers. Her scream of pleasure echoed through the room as her body pulsed. As Jack slowly pulled his fingers out of her pussy, they were captured by the Doctor’s mouth as he licked the taste of Rose’s orgasm from them.  
  
Releasing Jack’s fingers from his mouth, the Doctor worked his way back up her body and wrapped his arms around Rose from one side, while Jack mirrored his movements on the other. Together they held her tightly, while she slowly slid back into her body from the force of her release… their breath a bit uneven as well.  
  
“I… uh… Wow… that was…, “ Rose was at a complete loss for words as she was wrapped in the arms of the two men she had wanted for so long.  
  
“Incredible.”  
  
“Brilliant.”  
  
“Absofuckingamazing.”  
  
“Those work,” she laughed, her heart still beating wildly. With a wicked smile she reached down and wrapped her fingers around both of their erect members. “Not that I am complaining, but I am all for an equal opportunity partnership, and you my lovers, are not satisfied.”  
  
Jack grinned, “Oh trust us, we are satisfied… just not satiated.”  
  
“Well then I better do something about that, shouldn’t I?”  
  
The first frenzy over, this time they moved more slowly. She worked her hands around them. She traced her fingers lightly up the hard shaft then circled them back down smoothly. She loved the groans that escaped her lips as her hands played with them. Moving down further on the bed, Rose took the Doctor’s cock in her mouth while she worked Jack’s with her fingers. She mimicked the motion of her fingers with her tongue and watched with her own growing smile as the Doctor’s hands clenched in the sheets and his back arched, while a deep moan escaped his lips. Switching, she then took Jack’s cock in her mouth while working the Doctor’s with her fingers. His reaction was to grab her head and guide it as she swirled her tongue around her. He gasped with pleasure. She alternated between them for a while, fanning the flames, teasing them, making them feel as intensely as they had made her feel earlier.  
  
“Stop teasing me and suck me off,” Jack’s voice interrupted her.  
  
“Your wish is my command, my Captain,” Motioning him higher on the bed, Rose rolled over onto her knees, and bent down taking him completely in her mouth. Jack groaned as he slid his hands into her hair showing her exactly where to go.  
  
“I need you,” the Doctor’s voice slid over her as he moved behind her. Spreading her knees wider, he positioned himself and then with a cry slid deeply inside her. His cry was echoed by Rose as she worked around Jack’s cock. They developed a rhythm with Rose in the middle of them. The Doctor would thrust in as she slid her mouth deeper around Jack’s cock. Then as she slid back off it, the Doctor would pull out. It was a dance that flowed perfectly.  
  
The Doctor came first, flooding Rose and pushing her almost to the edge of her own orgasm. As he slowly continued his motions, Jack pulled Rose’s mouth off his cock and said, “I need to be inside you.”  
  
The Doctor pulled out of Rose and helped position her above Jack’s cock. Sliding down it was just enough to send Rose over her own edge and her second orgasm hit hard around Jack’s cock. A few quick thrusts and Jack was also crying out his release, filling her. The Doctor collapsed on top of them both and they fell back into the bed in a tangle of sweaty limbs, breathing heavily and all fully sated.  
  
The Doctor rolled slightly to the side, positioning Rose back between them. With a cheeky grin he said, “Yup… still got it.”  
  
Rose laughed while Jack responded, “I never lost it.”  
  
Rose’s throaty laugh caused a stirring in Jack’s groin. She felt the difference again her hip and arched an eyebrow at him. “Not much of a refractory period, eh Jack?”  
  
“Natural talent,” Jack grinned, rolled, and pinned her underneath him. Only instead of caressing her, he started tickling, causing her to wiggle and shriek as she tried to get away. With a grin the Doctor joined him and soon Rose was panting and gasping for them to stop.  
  
“I… gasp… please… stop… I… SURRENDER!” Rose’s heart was beating wildly and her entire body was flushed as she gasped for air.  
  
Wearing a wicked smile, Jack rolled off and gently brushed her sweaty hair away from her face. “I accept.” He leaned back down to kiss her.  
  
“No fair teaming up against me,” Rose grumbled, still slightly winded.  
  
“It’s the only way we can beat you,” the Doctor replied with a grin before kissing her.  
  
“Yea… right,” Rose laughed back before looking down at their sweaty, naked, bodies and sex rumpled sheets. She sniffed and could still detect a faint note of lake water. “Ugh, I need a shower and so do both of you. Jack, is your shower big enough for three?”  
  
“Of course. You can’t have an orgy-sized bed and not have an orgy-sized shower to go with it.”  
  
“Good,” she said with a wink, before tracing a nail up his semi-hard cock causing it to jump, “Would hate for the little captain to go to waste.”  
  
“Little? Who you calling little?” Jack grabbed her, threw her over his shoulder and ran toward the  
  
bathroom. 

********************

Jack set Rose down only after he had turned on the spray in the large tiled shower to a comfortably warm temperature.

The Doctor followed after them with a smile, pausing a moment to get fresh towels, before joining them. He was amused by their trash talking to each other – they each gave as good as they got. _I wonder if I will ever be relaxed enough to joke around like that. I just am not as naturally flirty. That’s ok though, someone has to keep them out of trouble._ He chuckled to himself as he set the towels down on the counter and walked into the spray. Four hands immediately reached for him, pulling him in closer, and he found his back pressed against Jack’s chest while Rose stood in front of him, running a hand up his chest. The smile that drove him crazy – tongue just touching her teeth – plastered across her face.

The Doctor’s response was to pull Rose in for a kiss with his left hand, while his right slid behind him to caress Jack’s cock. The gasp that escaped from Jack’s lips as The Doctor’s hand slid around his hardness was quickly replaced with a growl as he reached around to return the favor. The Doctor’s moan of pleasure was swallowed up in the movements of Rose’s tongue against his own, each of her hands on a cock enhancing the others touch. Jack stroked the Doctor in a way that soon had desire flooding through the Doctor’s body.

Rose pulled back from the kiss and said, “I want to watch you two. We are a triad and I know that Jack wants you as much as I do. Do you want Jack too?”

“I…,” The rest of the Doctor’s response was lost in a groan as Jack sunk his teeth into the meat of the area between his neck and shoulder. His knees buckled slightly before he was able to catch himself. Breathing heavy, he was shocked at the intense reaction to Jack’s bite.

“Jack. I didn’t get my answer. “

“Sorry. I couldn’t resist.”

“Doctor?”

“I…,” Still breathless, he tried again, ”Yes. Like you, I have wanted Jack from almost the moment he joined us on the TARDIS. I just couldn’t let him or you know until recently.”

“Do you want me to fuck you?” Jack’s voice teased against the Doctor’s ear, causing his already hard cock to become steel.

“Rassilion, yes.”

“Good.” The devilish smile on Rose’s face made the Doctor’s heart skip a beat. Turning slightly to look at Jack, he saw the same intensity on the other man’s face, and he shivered despite the heat from the water.

Slowly Jack removed his hand from the Doctor’s hard cock and moved it over to his hip, while his other hand echoed the motion. Sliding both hands up the Doctor’s rib cage he continued until he had both of the Doctor’s arms raised above his head. “Bend over and brace your hands against the shower wall. Spread your legs.”

Obediently, the Doctor complied. He could feel the water cascading down his back and running in swift moving rivulets down his legs. Opening his eyes and looking down, he was surprised to see Rose positioning herself on his knees below his chest, out of the direct spray of the water.

A wicked smile was the answer to the Doctor’s questioning look. In the space of a heartbeat Rose had wrapped her lips around the Doctor’s cock and was using her tongue to tease it in a way that had the Doctor throwing his head back in pleasure and slipping a hand down to slide it into the blond hair of the woman beneath him.

“Put your hand back on the wall.” Jack growled next to his ear, reminding the Doctor that there was more to come. The Doctor quickly returned his hand to its former position. Using the water and a drop of soap as a lubricant, Jack slid his fingers into the crease of the Doctor’s ass and started fingering the tightly puckered hole; the low groans letting him know that the Doctor was enjoying every moment. Slowly Jack inserted his index finger. He let the Doctor get used to the sensation of it sliding slowly in and out before adding another. Finally as Jack scissored his fingers open and closed, stretching the tight space, the Doctor’s low groans grew more frantic and eager. Watching the Doctor’s body react to his fingers and Rose’s talented tongue, Jack stroked himself for a few moments to make sure he was completely hard.

Positioning himself behind, he spread the Doctor’s ass cheeks wide and slowly guided his rigid member into the tight hole. The initial push caused the Doctor to tighten briefly in a flash of pain before pleasure became the dominant sensation. Jack groaned as he let himself fall into the angled rhythm he knew would cause pleasure quickly for both him and the Doctor.

The Doctor was on fire. His hands were clenched against the cool tile trying to find some anchor in the storm of emotion that was washing over him. The sucking feeling of Rose’s mouth around his cock coupled with the powerful sensation of Jack riding him left him completely adrift. He couldn’t focus on either and the combination was rapidly making him lose control. Finally he resist no more and with a sound close to a scream, he shot his load deep into Rose’s throat as Jack grunted behind him, his own orgasm filling the Doctor with a warm gush. He felt the strain on his arms as Jack collapsed against his back for a brief moment. Rising slowly, Jack wrapped his arms around the Doctor and pulled him back against his chest.

With a sigh of regret, Rose slid her lips off of the Doctor’s softening member and stood up. She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the Doctor, to rest on Jack’s hips. The three of them stayed like that for a few moments, while the water slowly cooled.

The Doctor let Jack and Rose support most of his weight as he felt himself gradually come back into his body. _That was beyond anything I could have imagined_. “I don’t even know how to describe that.”

“The Doctor, speechless?” Rose grinned at Jack. “We will have to do that again!”

He grinned back, “Can we eat something first? All those calories burned in swimming and other recreational activities and I am starving!”

Rose’s own stomach chose that moment to remind her that she was hungry as well. When a rumble from the Doctor’s echoed through the shower, they all started giggling.

“Even our stomachs’ are in tune,” the Doctor teased. “Let’s order in from Golden Dragon.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Jack responded.

Laughter echoed through the bathroom as the three of them quickly rewashed themselves and got in a towel fight before ordering dinner.

********************

Rose woke first. The Doctor and Jack were curled on either side of her, their hands linked lightly on her lower abdomen. _I can’t believe that I have both of them_. Happiness flared through her. _They are mine and I am theirs._ She smiled down at them and yawned. She started to close her eyes when a faint humming caught her attention. _Something woke me… something is different…_ Her sleep and sex addled mind, finally made the connection, and she sat straight up, looking around in wonder.

“Whas wrong…” the Doctor mumbled, his eyes still closed, as he felt Rose move.

“Go back to sleep, you insatiable wench,” Jack murmured.

“Doctor, Jack! Wake up!! You need to wake up!!” the excitement in Rose’s voice finally penetrated.

Both the Doctor and Jack opened their eyes. The deep blues and silvers of Jack’s bedroom had disappeared around them, to be replaced with golden metal. The carpeted floor was now a ceramic tile. The bed remained the same, but the fireplace had changed shape and there was now a large deep couch in front of it. Bookshelves took up one wall, currently holding only the few knick-knacks and books Jack had managed to collect during his time on the planet. Off to one side Rose could see two doors. Without knowing how she knew, there was a bathroom behind one and a huge walk-in closet behind the other.

“We are on-“ Jack started.

“The TARDIS!!!” the Doctor leapt out of bed, quickly pulled on loose trousers and sprinted out of the room.

Jack and Rose were only a heartbeat behind him, Jack having snatched up a pair of pajama bottoms and Rose having just grabbed the blanket off the bed and wrapped it around her body. They followed the hallway as a familiar hum grew louder. Grins so wide they threatened to fall of their faces, Jack and Rose turned a corner and stepped into the Control Room. The Doctor was busy running around the center column pulling on knobs and lifting levers, maniacal laughter burbling out of his throat.

Jack laughed and ran to join him. He looked fiddled with a screen. “Rose we are orbiting-“

“Around the Moon,” Rose answered with a grin on her face as she stared out the door she had opened. The Earth lay in brilliant blues and greens below her and trillions of stars winked at her. She opened her heart to the TARDIS, letting all her emotions pour through the link, she could feel. Gratitude, Excitement, Pride, and Curiosity bounced back at her, but overlaid so strong on top of it all was Love.

Jack stepped up quietly and slid one of his hands in hers as the Doctor did the same with the other. The three of them stood in the open door staring at the beauty before them and were humbled.

“The Heart of the TARDIS is all three of us.” The Doctor said quietly. “That’s what she was trying to tell us for so long. Why she kept pushing those images. She never would have completely formed if the three of us didn’t bond together. It took all our love to make her complete. She really is a part of us.”

“And we are a part of her and each other – forever,” Rose answered. “I know this. Each of us cannot survive without the others.”

“I am still immortal. You aren’t.” Jack said quietly.

“Problem for another day,” the Doctor responded.

**_My Doctor, My Captain, and My Wolf will remain together until the very end… and I will be with them._ **

“I don’t know what she said, but the TARDIS is convinced that won’t be a problem,” Rose said.

“Then I won’t worry about the future,” Jack answered. “Tonight. Together. Everything is perfect.” He pulled both of them into a hug. _I am HOME._

Their arms wrapped around each other, their hearts beating in time with the thrumming of the TARDIS, the Doctor, Rose Tyler, and Captain Jack Harkness stared out at their future.


	21. Epilogue

_93 years later…_   
  
The TARDIS hovered over a tiny rip in dimensions in a little known section of the Medusa Cascade. The rip itself was only 2 ½ meters high and a little over one wide. In the vastness of space it was a less than the size of an atom, but it was perfect for the needs of the TARDIS and her three occupants.   
  
Inside the control room, Capt. Jack Harkness glanced over at the two small frail bodies, curled together on a sofa that had been mounted to the deck some ten years ago, when a fall from a bad landing had pitched the Doctor off his chair and broken his hip. _Granted he was roughly 110 years old when it happened, and the TARDIS was so apologetic after it occurred. Still I am just as glad, she put that sofa there. It’s comfortable enough for all three of us to sleep on if we can’t make it back to our room for some reason._ Jack ran his hand through his now completely silver hair. He caught a glimpse of his reflection on a glass surface. _Still don’t look too shabby, Jack, if you do say so yourself. Though I will never again pass for thirty-five… more like seventy_. He glanced over again at the Doctor and Rose, who smiled back to him in amusement.   
  
“Are you lamenting the loss of your youthful appearance again?” the Doctor teased.   
  
Jack plastered an innocent look across his face, “Who me? I would never be that vain.”   
  
Rose burst out laughing while the Doctor glared.   
  
“Ok, maaaaaybe I was thinking that I aged rather gracefully, but do you disagree?” Jack held his grin as he walked over and knelt down in front of them, before leaning in to kiss each one softly.   
  
“No,” Rose laughed, “You will always be the same dashing Captain who caught me as I slid down your tractor beam,” she paused and let the innuendo sink in, which caused Jack to grin wider.   
  
“You fell into my arms and I fell into your lives.” Jack said with sudden solemnity. He adjusted their hands so that the ones wearing their wedding rings were entwined. “I will never regret that. Just like I will never regret my aging a bit faster than I would have otherwise, because it kept both of you with me until we could find this place.”   
  
**_You can thank ME for both of those things, my Captain._**  
  
The Doctor laughed, “Knew our ol’ girl wasn’t going to be able to keep her mouth shut for much longer.”   
  
Jack turned and swept a bow toward the center console, no less graceful even if he was still on his knees. “I do thank you, My Sweet TARDIS. I can’t thank you enough for finding a way to funnel some of my endless years into them. Truly, I don’t care that I aged physically because of it. It kept them alive and with me, and that’s all that mattered.”   
  
“For a while it also helped keep the questions at bay,” Rose giggled. “At least now you look like you could be our son, rather than our grandson. I can’t tell you how many shocked looks I get, when I tell people that you are my husband and not my child. If you still looked thirty-something, we would have to be fending off a whole lot more species who wanted to ‘save you’ from the lecherous old couple.”   
  
“Says the woman who we recently had to rescue from the cult that wanted to worship you as their Mother goddess,” Jack riposted. “I saw the intentions in their minds and they had little to do with honoring your wisdom and far more to do with honoring your body.”   
  
“Jack, I am one hundred and twenty years old-“  
  
“Who doesn’t look a day over eighty-five,” the Doctor interjected with a smirk.   
  
“-and I could have used a bit of pampering after the last session of the Council of the Shadow Proclamation.”   
  
“The Doctor and I pamper you plenty, love, and you know it.” Jack winked before turning to the Doctor. “And you – were you just going to sit there and watch them take her?”   
  
“Of course not,” the Doctor replied. “I had a plan all set to go. The distraction was in place all I needed to do was send the signal with my trusty sonic screwdriver and we could have run out of there.”   
  
“More like walked briskly. We haven’t been able to run in years,” Rose countered with a grin, before turning serious. She pulled their entwined fingers up to her lips and paced a kiss on the backs of their palms. “All joking aside, Jack, are you sure you want to do this? There is no going back once we start. I have no regrets on the life I have lived with both of you. It was brilliant. I am happy and I am satisfied to die in peace.”   
  
Jack let the honesty flood his eyes and heart, since he knew she could read his emotions, before saying fiercely, “I have no regrets either. I love you both beyond all time and reason. I am not going to lose you now, because of some stupid frailties of the human body.”   
  
“Jack, you will no longer HAVE a body if this works,” the Doctor cautioned, “weeeeelll... at least not a body in the way you do now. No more physical intimacy.”   
  
“I may not have a human-shaped body anymore after this, but I will have both of you forever in my mind. That is far more important to me.” He stood up and pulled them both into his arms before whispering, “I can handle eternity if I have you with me.”   
  
**_The rift is starting to shrink. It is time. My Captain, my Doctor, my Wolf..._** A panel on the center console lifted, spilling golden light into the control area.   
  
All three looked at the light and then looked at each other. Without a word, Rose leaned over to kiss both Jack and the Doctor for the last time, her lips firm despite their age. The three met together in a kiss that burned brighter than the stars outside. Their love, passion, and all the years of shared laughter, tears, joy, pain, despair, hope, and unshakable faith in each other rode the wave of that single kiss. It was eternal and all too short. When their lips finally broke apart, they continued to hold each other for a moment more.   
  
“I will love you both – across time, space, and for all eternity…” Rose started.   
  
“Where you both go, I will follow – across time, space and for all eternity…” Jack continued.   
  
“The three of us are bound, by love’s choice, by fate, by time itself. We will be together across time, space, and for all eternity,” the Doctor finished.   
  
Without another word, the three of them linked hands and walked into the golden glow at the heart of the TARDIS.   
  
**_I will protect you across time, space, and for all eternity._**  
  


*******************

Jack’s mind slowly regained consciousness. The Heart of the TARDIS had consumed them immediately when they stepped into its glow. There was no pain, however, just the unconditional love from the ship to the ones she chose. Even as he could feel his body warping and twisting under the uncontrolled forces of the Time Vortex, the love and the energy presence he could still identify as the Doctor and Rose and the fierce devotion of the ship sustained him. _I am here… are they?_

_This is brilliant._ The Doctor part of his mind replied filled with curiosity, glee, and sheer joy.

_It worked perfectly_. The Rose part of his mind agreed – fierce, happy, and containing almost as much glee as the Doctor part.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief and wiggled his fingers. _No… not fingers… they are almost like…_

_Tentacles!_ The Doctor part of his mind supplied with glee.

_Tentacles?!?_ The Jack part of the mind unit answered then groaned when the Rose part supplied an image to go with it. _OK- I knew that not having a body would be weird, but why didn’t you tell me that all I would be… sorry WE would be… is one gigantic floating head?_

_Spoilers!_ The Rose and Doctor part said simultaneously and the Jack part could feel their laughter.

_You did once tell me that you were called the ‘Face’ of Boe, if I remember correctly._ The Doctor part smirked.

_**The rift is closing. We must go now or remain trapped in this universe. What do you wish, my Partners?** _

_Weeeelll… there is an awful lot we still need to do back in the other Universe._ The Doctor part answered.

_It’s going to be so much fun watching ourselves on our journey._ The Rose part added.

_Dearest Ship, Take us Home._ The Jack part said with a smile.


End file.
